Howls from a Daedra's island
by Gothicpug
Summary: The sequel to 'Howl'. The civil war in Skyrim has finally come to a head, with the Stormcloaks taking hold, but Skyrim is still in danger. Ayah and Farkas have started the own family now, but with their own curse passed on through blood, are the companions willing to pick their homeland over their family?
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Hey all! And welcome back to those that read my first Skyrim fic. I had some very pleasing results with that last one and because Ayah wont leave me alone, I've decided to continue with her story.

I hope you enjoy, please review if you like what you read and I do advise you to read Howl before this. It might fill you in on some details that seem a little crazy reading this chapter.

GP

* * *

Farkas was pale when Danica first handed him his son. He looked like he'd pass out at any moment. Vilkas and Aela stood either side of him, ready to _try _and catch him if he did.

The child was perfect, though every family thinks that. He came out screaming and fighting, the way every Nord parent wants their child to arrive into the world. Ayah was too tired to be coherent and passed out after the final push that brought her son into the world.

"You should be proud." Danica smiled to the new father as she wiped her hands clean of his wife's blood. "He has his mother's lungs. Another Dragonborn someday eh?" She joked and went to examine Ayah.

His son quietened once in his father's arms and clutched tightly at the fur the priest of Kynareth had wrapped him in. Farkas looked down at the tiny boy with wide eyes, but said nothing.

"He looks like you..." Vilkas whispered, trying not to make the child scream more then anything else.

"Or does he?" Aela smirked. "I think he looks like Ayah."

"Don't be foolish." Vilkas scowled. "He's a lad. He can't look like his mother."

With a roll of her eyes, Aela snorted. "Now whose being foolish Vilkas? Ayah and Farkas look similar... He looks like them both." She said, stroking the child's blacked hair gently with a finger.

"Well then why did you say-...!"

The boy gave a grumble, his little eyes opening to reveal icy blue irises. Both Companions leant in to get a better look.

"He's so small..." Farkas finally mumbled.

"Aye..." Vilkas agreed, his head cocked to one side as he gazed at his new nephew. Defiantly, the child stared back, his wrinkled little hands clutching tighter at the furs. He watched as Vilkas leant back...then to one side and then the other. "He's very...alert..." The younger twin murmured.

"Kodlak..." All three jumped as Danica hushed Ayah.

"You need sleep." The priest said quietly and dabbled her sweat covered brow.

"No..." Ayah weakly pushed away Danica's arm and tried to move, only to be pushed down again. "Kodlak. We agreed." She croaked over at her husband and shield siblings.

"Kodlak?" Vilkas and Aela looked at each other before turning to Farkas. They were surprised to see him smiling.

"Aye. Kodlak." He kissed the boys head and cuddled him close to his chest.

-oOo-

"Awww, he's such a handsome little thing." Brynjolf cooed over the edge of the crib while wiggling a little stuffed toy in front of Kodlak's face. The boy reached out curiously and grasped the arm of the toy.

"Did you get him that legitimately Bryn, or did you steal it?" Ayah asked cautiously, resting her elbow on the edge of the crib and looking at her friend sceptically.

"Ayah!" Brynjolf reeled back, as if appalled by her accusation. "I'm offended you'd think so lowly of me that I'd offer your new born son stolen goods..."

"He stole it from a cottage we passed on the way here..." Delvin blurted without batting an eyelid as he too, leant on the crib watching the child.

Bryn shot him an angry glance which made the breton smirk.

"Aye, I might have done." Bryn tried to cover himself quickly. "But I did it out of the kindness out my heart."

"You stole another child's toy, to give to my son..." Ayah cocked an irritated eyebrow.

"I told him to buy something." Karliah frowned from the chair next to the crib.

"He's simply too tight to pay for anything." Vex snorted from the wall. She had no interest in Ayah's new brat. She was just there to see if Torvar had anything new to steal since he'd become her new favourite target.

"Hey!" Bryn frowned. "Least I got him something." He said, glaring at the other thieves.

"I brought him something actually." Karliah smiled, standing from her seat and pulling out a little box from her pocket. She took off the lid, the others leaning to peer into the box. Inside was a little silver chain and pendant with a ruby charm.

"Karliah!" Ayah gasped. "You didn't need to get him that!"

The dark elf smiled wider and shook her head. "It was no trouble. I already had the silver and the ruby. The smith at the Flagon did the rest. Want to see little one?" She asked Kodlak. He cooed softly, pawing at the toy Bryn had given him.

Careful that he didn't grab it and break it, she eased it over the edge of the crib and held it out for him. Ayah's son suddenly lost all interest in Bryn's gift and reached for the chain.

No sooner had his fingers touched it though, did he scream bloody murder and began to flail in his crib. Everyone in the room jumped and instantly Ayah scooped him up into her arms.

"I...I don't know what happened?!" Karliah stuttered, baffled as she watched Ayah try and sooth her son.

"Is there any sharp edges lass?" Bryn asked, taking the necklace and looking it over.

"No." Karliah said, absolutely heartbroken that she might have hurt the tiny child. "I had it made so he couldn't hurt himself.

Kodlak continued to sob as Ayah took his hand to look what was wrong. She was shocked at what she saw. There was no blood, no cut. Just a long, angry burn across the pads of his fingers where he'd touched the silver chain.

His mother's eyes widened in horror and she stumbled backward, her back hitting the wall.

"Ayah?" Vex narrowly missed being squished against the wall by the other woman and grabbed at her arm to stop any further falling.

"Silver..." she whispered.

"What?" The blonde woman scowled.

"He's allergic to silver... it burns his flesh...Oh no."

-oOo-

"And as soon as he touched it..." Ayah's eyes filled with tears as she explained to Aela. The thieves had long since left, Karliah devastated at what had happened. Kodlak was sleeping soundly in his crib, his hand wrapped to stop him from hurting it any further.

"You do realise..." The older, flame haired woman said, watching the child sleep in his crib made by his father an Vilkas. "You and Farkas are both still werewolves. You didn't cure yourselves and we hadn't even discovered the cure by the time you'd conceived."

"So he has wolf blood..." Ayah's heart sank.

"More then likely. And as his was passed down from you and Farkas, and not given to him by drinking the blood...I don't see how we could cure him. I don't think we could. You and Farkas, sure. But someone born a wolf? Its already part of who he is." Aela said without any emotion. She could see Ayah breaking down into tears from her seat next to her son's crib. "Your child belongs to Hircine."

-oOo-

"Wait, we can't do anything? Nothing at all?" Farkas's nose wrinkled as he tried his hardest to understand his son's situation. He'd only been born a few days and already there was something wrong?

"We passed on the blood to him." Ayah said slowly, seeing him struggle. "Not by letting him drink our blood, but actually by conceiving him. That means the curse is part of him. It can't be removed."

"So...He wont go to Sovngarde." Farkas frowned as his wife nodded.

"Aela said he belongs to Hircine... but that isn't true, I wont have that!" Ayah braced herself against the bar in his old room. Why they still returned there, she didn't know, but it was just something they did when they needed to talk seriously.

"Then what do we do?" Farkas asked from his old bed.

"I'm not curing myself." She said firmly.

"But...you wont go to Sovngarde."

"I don't know where I'm going or how. My soul has been used as payment far too many times." She muttered. "If my son has to live with uncontrollable urges, restless sleep, bone breaking, skin tearing pain, so will I."

Farkas sat in silence. He was truly lost now. It had only been a week since he'd discussed curing himself with Vilkas. His twin was planning on making the trip to Ysgramor's tomb soon to release himself from his wolf blood. Farkas had planned to go with him, probably with Ayah... but now it seemed selfish. Leaving his son, his first born alone with the curse he didn't ask for.

Standing from the bed, He wrapped his arms around his wife and pulled her close. "I'll do it too love. I'll do anything for you and our son."

-oOo-

Teagan crept in from the tavern in the early hours of the morning. He'd been seeing one of the wenches there for a while, but had to keep it under wraps as Ayah was still trying to work out his marriage for him.

Ghorza had reluctantly relinquished custody of their oldest daughter for him and Sharn was living at Jorrvaskr, soaking up as much Companion knowledge as she could. Her mother had insisted she continue with her forging, so during the day, Ayah took her up to the Sky forge and left her with Eorlund, much to his irritation. At night, she'd sit with the Companions in he mead hall. She'd grown close to Mog, One of the more recent members of the Companions and the only Orc. He was pleased with that. It was nice to see his daughter able to relax with someone she felt familiar with.

He crept down into the underbelly of the mead hall, the torches dimmed as the companion's slept. He slunk down the hall and went to turn off into his room when he caught sight of a candle burning in the darkness of Kodlak's room from a crack in the door.

Slowly, and carefully, he pushed on the door, his hand groping at his short sword just in case. There had been a sudden increase in vampire attacks across Skyrim, people waking to find the creature leaning over them or drinking the blood of a loved one.

In the last week there are been an attack right there, in Whiterun.

The Companions were being called on more and more to handle the problem. This caused Ayah to enforce a cure disease potion rule. That meant every member of the Companions, that wasn't a werewolf, was made to carry five cure disease potions at any time. Ayah was paying Arcadia to keep them supplied.

His stance relaxed though, as he opened the door to see Ayah sat watching Kodlak over the edge of his wooden crib.

"You're up late..." He sighed in relief.

"You've been out with that wench again." She countered without looking at him. Teagan mouthed his curses before huffing.

"How did you know?"

Ayah finally looked over at him. He noticed his cousin was fiddling with something in her hands. It looked like a ring. "You forget I have a life away from the Companions." She said quietly, looking down at what she was holding. It was hard for Teagan to see in the dull lighting, but it looked like a ring and a braided piece of leather. She was just finishing the braid as she sat there.

"What's that?" He asked, coming to crouch down beside her.

Without hesitation, she held up the braid and then ring. Teagan's eyes widened in horror as he focused on the wolf's head reaching out of the metal band.

"Is that that ring you got from that werewolf?" He hissed, looking to his cousin as if she was crazy. "Didn't you say that thing was dangerous? why are you holding it? you could turn into a beast! what about Kodlak?!"

"Its for him..." She replied, cutting off his rant.

Teagan watched Ayah's sad expression as she toyed with the ring. "He's a werewolf Teagan..."

"How'd you know?"

"He's allergic to silver..."

"So?" He snorted. "I'm allergic to cabbage. That doesn't make me a werebeast." His mind began to wonder then. What werebeast would he be if he were allergic to cabbage...

"He was born with the wolf blood Teagan." Ayah voice snapped him out of his daydreaming. "Me and Farkas have given it to him... We can't release him from it either like we can ourselves."

"He's just a baby Ayah. Only a few days old." Teagan snorted, clutching his cousin's hand comfortingly. "You shouldn't be worrying about this right now. Its not important."

Ayah wrenched her hand free and glared at him angrily. "It is important Teagan!" She hissed. "Its _part _of him. Not a curse, not something that can before removed. It'll effect who he is. his personality, his life. Mine and Farkas's life..." She deflated at the thought. "I don't want any more children if this is their fate."

"So remove your own curse?!" Teagan nudged her leg, giving her a hard look.

"I can't! I don't want Kodlak to be alone." She shook her head before grabbing her hair and raking her fingers through it.

Teagan sighed heavily and sat back on the floor. This was so awkward. He wasn't even going to try and start contemplating what his little cousin was thinking. As a parent he could see what was tearing her apart. But at the same time, he wasn't a werewolf and neither were his children.

"So you and Farkas are just gonna...what?" He finally asked, too tired to try and make sense of it any more.

"We don't know." Ayah confessed.

Kodlak stirred in his crib, grumbling and shifting in his sleep. Both cousins sat in silence watching him, waiting to see if he'd wake. When he did not, they looked back at one another.

"We want him to be happy. We want him to know its ok." She finally said. "I suppose we're gonna take it a step at a time."

"Aye, as you should as new parents." Teagan agreed. Ayah smirked at him slightly and he felt himself grin. "Hey, I've done this three times already. I know better then most how hard it is at first. Ghorza was crazy the first couple of months after having Sharn. I ended up doing everything while she spent her days sobbing or hammering the shit out of some iron at the forge." Slapping Ayah's arm gently, he chuckled. "You're doing good. I know it's early days but the lad has everything he'll ever need here. Most children don't have this much family when they're first born. This kid..." He jabbed a thumb at Kodlak."He's got a whole warrior family behind his fights."

Ayah smiled then and her tense shoulders relaxed. "Thank you Teagan." Her cousin shook his head.

"There's nothing to thank me for."

"But there is." She insisted. "You knew just what to say. Thank you. "

Teagan nodded and looked down at the ring she was still toying with. "So? what are you planning to do with that?"

Ayah held up Hircine's ring and threaded it over the braided leather carefully before tying the ends to make a little necklace. "Hircine's ring can be used to control the transformations of those with beast blood. I'm going to give this to Kodlak. I want him to wear it at all times to maybe help clear his mind when the red mist descends."

"Good thinking..." Teagan chuckled.

"Of course it is." His cousin smirked. "That's why I'm harbinger."

The two laughed before Teagan stood and hugged Ayah in the chair. "Go get some rest." He said against her hair.

"I will in a little while. I want to make sure he's fed before I sleep." Ayah replied, releasing Teagan. "Oh!" Teagan had just turned to leave when she grabbed his wrist. "I'm going to be taking the whelps out with Farkas, Vilkas and Ayah next week..."

"Are you sure you're up for that?" Teagan asked with a questioning look. Ayah nodded and smiled softly.

"I want you to come."

"Why?" He pulled a bemused face and grinned. "I'm not a Companion."

"No." Ayah said slowly."Not yet. That's why I want you to come. Maybe when you leave the tomb, you will be."

-oOo-

The days flew by and one week to the day, Ayah, Aela, Vilkas, Farkas and Teagan were walking ahead of a small group of warriors toward Valthume barrow. Ayah and Farkas had left their son in the care of Tilma and Ria back at Jorrvaskr.

"I'm so excited!" Squeaked a little imperial woman. She was only about 5'3 in height and the Companions had been confused why such a delicate looking little woman, with her honey coloured curls and shimmering blue eyes had wanted to join them. She carried a glass bow and arrows and Ayah had sent her out with Aela to try her hand.

The huntress had reported back that the girl was good, but got a little...distracted... by the flowers growing in the valley.

But the best part... was her name.

"Lovejoy!" She'd beamed from her seat beside the fire pit. The Companions had stared at one another in uncertainty.

"You're name...is Lovejoy..." Njada looked as if she was going to throw up.

"Yes!" The girl had giggled. "My parent's were priests of Mara."

"I'd never have guessed..." Athis had cringed.

Lovejoy bounced along side Vilkas, making the older man a little uncomfortable at just how _happy_ she was all the time.

"You've never faced a Draugr, have you Lovejoy?" Ayah drawled from her place at the lead.

"Nope." she smiled, watching the butterflies flutter across the plains.

"Oh today'll change your life then..." Mog sneered from the back.

Mog had arrived alone one night. She'd scared the life out of a drunken Torvar and Ria as she carried him home from the Bannered mare to find the hulking Orc woman lurking at the doors of Jorrvaskr. She was the strong and silent type. It was partly why she got on with Farkas and Vilkas. There was really no need to speak. A nod was enough to send the Orc or work.

From what Ayah had been able to get from her, Mog had been born just over the boarder in Highrock. As a young woman she'd married an Orc chief and had moved to a Stronghold further into the country. One day, the stronghold was attacked by soldiers and every Orc had perished, except her. She'd closed up then, not willing to say much more. Ayah hadn't pushed.

From what they'd seen of her skills already when Farkas had taken her out onto the plains to test her strength, the Orc had caved in the head of every giant and Mammoth at the giant's camp at Sleeping tree cave with her huge, one of a kind War hammer she'd named Oghren.

Farkas came back to Jorrvaskr singing her praises and Ayah had gotten a little jealous.

"Draugr give me the creeps..." Murmured a little wood elf named Hingor.

He'd arrived from Valenwood along with Lovejoy and another Nord warrior named Itar. The three had been travelling Tamriel a long time together apparently and had heard the rumours of Dragons and a Dragonborn who'd defeated a legendary dragon and lead the famous Companions from a Nord traveller they'd met in an inn somewhere.

It was Hingor that had written to Ayah at Jorrvaskr, asking to join. There had been a fourth warrior with then...but he'd been eaten by a werevulture on the way, or so they'd said.

Once in Skyrim, they'd done a little adventuring, looking to get a feel for the new land before heading for Whiterun.

Itar the Nord of the little group in his heavy steel armour and great glass sword remained quiet at the very back of the group.

He's made it Very clear he didn't want to be a Companion, leading Ayah and the others to question why he was ever there.

Within the first hour of being in Jorrvaskr, the man had nearly broken down in tears and most of the Companions were sure he was unhinged.

The little bit of back story Ayah had gained from his travelling partners was that he was a carpenter by trade, but couldn't find work as anything but a Mercenary in Morrowind, where he'd been living since he was a boy. According Hingor, the dark elves only wanted Nords as bodyguards against public assassinations, making it a dangerous career choice.

Itar had naturally been very good with a blade, but when a member of a very important family in Morrowind had been assassinated under his guard, he'd been blamed and had been hunted by the Morag Tong. He was forced to flee the land, leaving behind his dark elf wife and baby girl.

It had obviously affected him badly.

The only time Ayah or anyone had seen him pick up, was when Ayah had handed him Kodlak to hold. a smile had touched his lips as he held the Harbinger's child, as if imagining his own.

Ayah was still worried he'd do something stupid...

And then, there was Teagan. He walked beside Farkas, covering his eyes against the sun as his head pounded from drinking the night before.

"As if you went drinking the night before you're set to become a Companion. Do you want to die?" Ayah hissed at him. That was the least she'd done that morning to hurt her cousin actually. When all the whelps were up and ready to go, Teagan was snoring away in bed. Ayah had hit him over the head with Farkas's lute in anger.

"As if you hit me with a lute!" Teagan spat back from between gritted teeth.

"I loved that lute..." Farkas whined forlornly.

"I'll buy you a new one love..." She told Farkas hastily while glaring at her cousin. Vilkas was snickering behind them. He hated Farkas's lute playing, so he was pleased it was now in two bits on the floor of Teagan's room.

-oOo-

"Gather round..." Ayah called to the whelps once they had entered the barrow. The five warriors crowded around the little Harbinger, listening intently as she laid out the rules of the game.

"This is a test. I, _we..._" she motioned to the other companions. "Want to see if you have the heart to join us. We've all had to do this, so you're not going to be doing nothing new and once you are a Companion, tombs, caves and nasty places in general will become like a second home."

There were a couple of chuckles from the people around her and Ayah smiled, crossing her arms over her armoured chest. Oh how good it felt to be back in her Daedric armour once more.

"Now you're liable to face some undead...and when I say some, I mean a lot. No one is a fan of them, but you'll meet them a lot in your adventuring around Skyrim. I know that very well."

Waving a hand over at the corridor the whelps were to take to start their testing, Ayah drawled. "Once your in the main tomb, you'll be on your own, so to speak. Vilkas and Farkas will go with you and Teagan should be good back up. He's been hanging about at Jorrvaskr long enough to have picked something up. Now." She looked at them sternly. "Vilkas and Farkas are there to see if you have the right stuff. They're not your nannies. They're not your parents. They are there to make sure you make it out alive, but with as a little effort from them as possible. If any of you do die, well, I'll wish you luck in the next world now. But if a shield brother falls, no matter how badly it looks for them, you drag them out of there by their hair if you need to. You _do not _leave a shield sibling behind. To become a Companion, is to become a family and if you'd pull your own blood kin out of the way of danger, you do the same to your shield siblings. Got that?"

There was a groan of understanding and Ayah smiled. "Good. Off you go." she shooed them, kissing Farkas as he passed to lead them off into the tomb with Vilkas.

"Now what?" Aela came to stand beside her.

"Now we go and wait. I brought a little picnic." Ayah beamed.

"You're kidding." The huntress laughed in disbelief.

"Nope." Her Harbinger grinned. "follow me."

Ayah moved over to the far side of the room and pulled weak looking chain. Aela was stunned when the wall began to shake and slowly sink down.

"How did you know to do that?" She asked in awe.

"I've cleared out this place twice. I know how it works by now." And with that, Ayah began down the stone passage, followed by her Shield sister.

-oOo-

The sound of fighting got closer to the main hall Aela and Ayah had come into from the stone passage. They'd surprised some Draugr and had settled on a rock ledge once the undead creatures were truly dead.

"Ah, so they've made it then." Aela said after swallowing the last of her beer.

"How'd we know its the whelps?" Ayah laughed, chewing a sandwich. "Maybe it's Farkas and Vilkas and everyone else is dead?"

Aela laughed and shoved her shield sister playfully. "Don't be so cruel."

"Oh and you weren't thinking it?" Ayah giggled.

"I may have been thinking it, but I didn't say it." Aela sneered with a smirk.

Suddenly, the iron door was kicked open and the Lovejoy, Itar and Mog charged in screaming like mad people. Hingor cautiously slipped in afterward, his bow and arrow nervously darting about.

All four stopped abruptly to see Aela and Ayah sitting on their ledge, eating sandwiches and sipping beer over the bodies of several dead draugr.

"Hey! Now you killed those. You better not deduct them from our sore." Hingor scowled as he dropped his bow.

Behind them, Farkas appeared in the doorway, covered in dirt and blood and looking quite proud of himself, followed by Vilkas, who was helping a limping Teagan.

"Oh dear mara..." Ayah sighed seeing her cousin.

"No worries!" Teagan called, waving his sword. "Its just an arrow to the knee. I'm good!...ow...ow...ow..." He groaned as he limped toward them with Vilkas.

Ayah covered her face with her hands, ready to scream as Aela laughed.

-oOo-

"And would you raise your sword in their honour?" Ayah asked the twins.

The members of the circle, though considerably bigger now then back when she'd first joined the Companions, stood around the small group of five in the training yard, completing the final step of their initiation. Ayah was now speaking the words Kodlak Whitemane had spoken to her.

"It stands ready to meet the blood of their foes!" Farkas and Vilkas said in unison.

"And would you raise a mug in their names?"

"We would lead the song of Triumph as our mead hall revelled in their stories." The twins said again.

Sharn sat on the edge of the Sky forge, watching her father take his final step to becoming a companion. She beamed down at them all, her little hands balled in her apron excitedly.

"Then the judgement of the circle is complete." Ayah smiled. Tilma opened the door quietly behind the newest Companions and she and Ria slipped out onto the benches, Ria cradling Kodlak to her chest.

"It shall be so!" The circle echo and the initiation was done.

"Congratulations." Ayah told them all. "Welcome to the family."


	2. Chapter 2

chapter 2

five and a half years later.

"Stand still boy!" Eorlund grunted and growled as he tugged on the leather straps of the new wolf armour he'd spent nearly three months working on.

"It pinches and its uncomfortable!" Kodlak whined, trying to pull away from the old smith.

"It'll loosen up the more you wear it." Aela smiled as she watched Eorlund wrestle to fit the armour onto the Harbinger's son from the porch. The other companions all sat at the table or on the steps watching in mild amusement.

Kodlak, for his birthday, had asked for armour. So Eorlund had made him some. It had been finished early so the little boy could join his mother, father and uncle out hunting for sixth birthday.

First of course, he had to break it in.

"You look very handsome Kodlak." Ria teased him from the steps. She was holding on tightly to the wolf pelt the little lad usually wore out and about. Vilkas had given it to him when he turned five and Kodlak was very rarely seen without it.

Kodlak stuck his tongue out at her before yelping as Eorlund tugged at his breast plate.

"I said be still!" The old smith hissed through his teeth, quickly losing patients.

"I must agree completely." Lovejoy smiled around her mead tankard. "You do look very dashing little wolf cub. I bet all the girls will be after you soon!" he giggled.

"Just like his father..." Ayah murmured with a smirk while stood leaning against one of the porch's wooden beams, watching her son with a proud smile.

Finally, Eorlund finished and stood back away from the boy, leaving him to grumble and take his first, quite wobbly, steps in his new armour.

"Its too heavy." He muttered, trying to swing his arms.

"You'll get used it it with training." Vilkas commented, wiping his mead dampened lips with the back of his hand. "I'll teach you to get better."

"I don't think I like it." The little child scowled.

Eorlund's hand went to his face in despair at the boy's words and Ayah quickly descended the steps toward her son.

"Now Kodlak, that's not very grateful. Eorlund has spent a long time working on this armour for your birthday and it looks beautiful. Its amazing craftsmanship too." Ayah smiled over to the smith, trying to defuse the tension. "Thank you very much Eorlund. Say thank you Kodlak." She urged her son.

"Thank you..." He groaned, scuffing his boot against the dirt of the training area.

The old smith continued to scowl, but nodded once in acknowledgement before heading back to the forge. He passed Sharn on the way, the young half Orc smiling at her master, but not a word was uttered between them.

Sharn had grown considerably over the past five years, her shoulders and upper body beginning to bulk out from both genes and hard work at the forge. She was still a child, only twelve years old, but like all Orc children, she was growing fast.

She entered the courtyard, taking one look at her baby cousin before bursting out laughing. Kodlak gave a disgruntled scowl and glared over at the older girl.

"What are you laughing at?!" He demanded, a little red in the face.

"You look adorable !" Sharn howled with laughter. "Oh Kodlak, you look like your playing dress up!"

"Do not!" The little boy puffed up.

"I think he looks handsome." His mother cooed gently, ruffling his wild black hair.

"I **DO NOT!" **Kodlak insisted, stamping his little booted foot on the stone.

"He's a warrior!" Vilkas announced, standing from his seat at the table. He took the wolf pelt from Ria and walked down the steps toward his nephew. "He's not handsome or adorable. He's fierce and brave." He smirked and crouched down to come eye level with the boy. Kodlak puffed up with pride immediately and allowed his uncle to wrap the wolf skin around his armoured shoulders and tie the two front paws together over his chest, as it was accustomed. Kodlak reached back and grabbed the head of the wolf, the front teeth still fastened in and pulled it over his head.

"I'm a wolf!" He grinned from under his wolf head hood.

"You are." Vilkas agreed quietly, knowing the duel meaning in the little boys words.

"That reminds me." Ayah leaned over Vilkas and slipped two nibble fingers down the collar of her son's armour. She fumbled around for a moment or two, her smile quickly disappearing. "Where..." Nudging Vilkas out the way, Ayah knelt down in front of her son, slipping her whole hand down the neck of his armour.

Kodlak wriggled and fidgeted, giggling as his mother searched.

"What are you doing?" Mog asked from the shaded doorway, watching the Nord harbinger in bemusement.

"Kodlak, where is it?" Ayah questioned the boy as she pulled her hand out of his armour. Gripping his shoulders, she looked at the boy with a hard expression. "Where's your necklace? You know it's not meant to come off."

Kodlak's eyes widened and quickly turned away from his mother's in shame.

"Ayah, what's the matter?" Aela approached curiously from the porch.

"He's lost his necklace." The Harbinger bit back, panic raising in her chest.

Kodlak's necklace, or more accurately, the ring of Hircine which Ayah had given the boy as a baby was usually tied tightly around Kodlak's neck on a thick leather braid. He wore it at all times, on strict instructions from his mother. To others, it looked like a fancy bit of jewellery. A gift from a mother to her son.

To the higher members of the circle however, the member that had been companions under Kodlak Whitemane's reign, the meaning was clear and much much deeper.

As soon as he could talk, the child, named after the great harbinger before his mother, had complained of terrible nightmares. He whined of aches and pains. He often had bad feelings and most of all violent tendencies. It had been harder to keep the ring on him as a tiny child. He often pulled it off or slipped off the braid. But as he'd grown, Ayah had stressed to him the importance of the ring.

All those years ago, when she had gained the ring, fought for Sinding the werewolf's life and come face to face with the God of hunt himself, Hircine had, in return for being entertained, cleansed the ring of the curse he'd placed on it, allowing the rings true power to work.

The ring cleared the mind of those with beast blood. Those who were the children of Hircine. It pushed back the feeling of primal aggression and dispelled the need to hunt, all while allowing the user to use their beast blood talents. Kodlak's mind, when the ring was on, was clear and bright. He had such a sweet personality like his father, but was brave and daring like his mother.

When the ring was off however, red mist began seep into his thoughts. Kodlak became restless quickly and would often snap and snarl. The change was noticeable and hard for Ayah and Farkas to hide from those in the companions that were not aware of the child's nature.

"It's a necklace. What's the big deal?" Hingor shrugged and polished off another sweet roll.

"You can't even comprehend..." Aela snapped back at him.

"Where is it Kodlak?" Ayah asked her son firmly, still grasping his shoulders.

Kodlak gave a low growl, a clear sign that the red mist was creeping in and that he wouldn't stand for much more of his mother's demanding questions for much longer.

"I lost it in a bet." He finally said with a bitter tone.

"WHAT?!" Vilkas, Aela and Ayah barked in unison.

"I lost it in a bet!" Kodlak snarled back loudly, his teeth grinding together.

"How? A bet with who?" Vilkas pushed him for more information.

" Bojack." Kodlak wrenched his arms free of Ayah's grip and stormed up the steps of the porch. Farkas watched silently as his only son grabbed the door handle and threw the back door to Jorrvaskr with such force, it left a dent in the wall as it hit.

"Who?" Aela scowled, he mind raking over and over the names of kids in town.

"The new boy. His family have just moved here from the imperial city. He's been throwing his weight around." Sharn told the huntress. "Last I knew he was picking on the little boys in town, taking their money or precious things. I think Kodlak said something about socking him in the mouth if he tried anything..."

"Where does he live?" Ayah asked the Orc girl. Sharn shrugged and shook her head.

"I couldn't tell you. Maybe you should ask Ana."

"Aye." Ayah stood to her full hight and before anyone could say anything, had disappeared around the mead hall. Aela took off after her, followed by Vilkas and Farkas.

The four made their way through the streets, down into the plains district and over to Warmaiden's.

Adrianne was working the forge as usual, accompanied by a little girl the same age as Kodlak.

Ana had been born not long after the Harbinger's son and the two were very close friends. The smiths daughter spent many hours playing in and around Jorrvaskr, sharing Kodlak's love of swords and fighting.

She was often shunned by the other little girls in Whiterun for that very reason, but she didn't care. She dreamt of one day working the Skyforge at Jorrvaskr, though it was unlikely.

"Adrianne!" Ayah called from down the street. The smith stopped work on the sword she was making and looked up, her daughter doing the same."Can I have a word with Ana?"

Ana gasped softly and bit her lip. She wiped her dirty hands on her little apron, a habit she'd learnt from her mother, and shuffled forward to meet Kodlak's mother.

"Ana." Ayah greeted the child coolly.

The smith's daughter blushed and pushed her auburn hair out of her face shyly.

"This is about Kodlak's ring, isn't it?" The little girl asked in a small voice. Ayah gave a firm nod and Adrianne rounded the forge to see what was going on.

"What's the trouble?" She asked, looking between Ayah and her little girl.

"Kodlak has had his necklace stolen from him. I wondered if Ana knew anything about it?" Ayah scowled, crossing her arms over her chest.

"It wasn't stolen!" The little girl suddenly piped up. "Bojack bet Kodlak he wouldn't win in a fight and Kodlak lost. He didn't have any money so Bojack took his necklace..." She trailed off.

"Ana!" Adrianne looked down at her little girl angrily. "How could you let that happen? Why didn't you tell Ayah sooner?"

"We were gonna steal it back..." She mumbled and fiddled with the braid in her hair. "I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault." Ayah sighed. She knelt down to the girl, gently coaxing her to look up. "Can you tell me where I can find Bojack, or where he lives?"

Ana nodded and pointed up the steps directly facing the shop. "He lives up there. In the Battle-born's old place." She told Ayah.

"Thank you." Ayah pet her head and stood.

"You gonna go see him?" Adrianne asked.

"Of course. I need that necklace back." Ayah told her.

"Well good luck. I hope you do better than Ulfberth did when he went to see the kid." Adrianne huffed.

"What was he doing up there?" Aela asked from beside Ayah.

"That spoilt kid took Ana's wooden sword and threw it into the fire." The smith said, motioning to the fire pits that burned beside her shop on the end of the little stone bridge. "Ulfberth went to go tell him off but ended up getting deafened by the boy's mother. She screeched and screeched until he didn't even want to try and speak to her any more, gave up and returned to the shop. He's making her a new sword now but he's worried the kid'll do it again. He's nothing but a bully."

Ana scuffed her feet silently against the ground. The little girl had cried so much over the incident Ulfberth felt guilty about letting her down like that.

"Don't worry." Ayah snorted. "I can go one up from screeching and I can assure you she'll have no house left if I do."

-oOo-

As Ayah and the other companions walked up the steps toward the Battle-born's old home, they saw the new family's two boys sat on the doorstep. They were looking at the loot they'd taken from the other children in town and looked really quite pleased with themselves.

It made Ayah's blood boil.

As she neared, the boys looked up and quickly collected up their stash before scurrying inside.

Ayah climbed the steps swiftly and hammered on the door. Farkas came to stand beside her for support and Aela and Vilkas stood behind.

The door eventually opened and they were greeted by a very shabby looking woman with ruffled brown hair sprouting out from under her dirty looking cloth cap. Her skin looked grimy as well as her clothes and Ayah was left wondering how someone so...disgusting...could have moved into a house that was formally owned by the Battle-born's.

The Battle-born family had moved out about eighteen months ago. Coincidentally, it was around the same time Ulfric Stormcloak finally claimed victory over the Empire and had taken the throne.

Ayah had stayed out of that. She was a companion and they had nothing to do with wars.

The Battle-born's had probably fled to Cyrodiil to remain under the empire's rule. They probably didn't give a damn who moved into the house after them. They just wanted to get the coin and leave. Maybe they thought the place was going to the dogs, so they'd sold it to some.

"What?" The woman snapped, crossing her arms over her chest and leaning against the door frame lazily.

"Where's your boy?" Ayah asked her.

"Which one?" The woman sneered back to her own amusement.

"Bojack." Ayah sneered back to mock her.

The woman's lip curled up in disgust, her eyes rolling over the harbinger.

Ayah was fully armoured, her swords on her hips and flanked by two bulky men and a tough looking woman. She could only imagine what sort of first impression she was making.

"Why'd you want him?" The woman asked her in a somewhat less harsh tone.

"Your boy has stolen from my son. I want the necklace he took back and I want it now." Ayah ground out.

"Is that so?" The woman's voice pitched slightly as he pushed herself off the door frame, her hands going to her hips. "How very dare you!" She screeched, causing all four companions to wince. "You come here, accuse my son of theft. Everyone's always accusing him since we got here!"

"Made your son really is a thief then..." Vilkas growled. "We don't just randomly start accusing people of crimes around here."

"What do you think you're doing now then?!" The woman yelled, throwing her arms in the air. "You're picking on us! Everyone in this town is picking on us because we're new and we're not as stuck up as the last lot that lived here, or anyone else in this town for that matter!"

"You're changing the subject." Aela said flatly. "You're son has taken something from our harbinger's son and he needs to return it."

"Harbinger eh?" The woman croaked, eyeing Ayah again. "Then you're all companions? You should be ashamed of yourselves, going around in groups, hassling normal people and little kids."

"YOUR SON HAS STOLEN FROM MY BOY!" Ayah suddenly raged. "The companions have nothing to do with it. This man here..." She snapped, motioning to Farkas. "Is my husband and the boy's father. That's his uncle..." She said pointing out Vilkas. "And that's my eldest shield sister." She added finally while jabbing her thumb at Aela.

"You're still a gang." The woman chimed, wagging her finger.

"Aye, but they're not here to hassle your son. They're here to stop me smacking you in the face." Ayah hissed.

"You should be ashamed of yourself!" The woman surged forward to come face to face with Ayah. "You're the leader of a respected warrior guild and your making threats against normal people. People you're meant to protect!?"

"I sure am!" Ayah bit back, shoving her face forward too.

"Enough!" Aela pushed between the other women, her arm pushing Ayah back. "Go get your boy. Now."

The woman moved back, her eyes still fixated on the seething Harbinger behind the huntress.

"Bo!?" She yelled. There was a bang behind her and then the sound of people moving about the house. The kid obviously knew he was in trouble, taking his time to come to the door.

"What?" Finally, a dirty blonde haired boy appeared at the door. His shirt and pants here ripped and dirty and he was sporting a beautiful black eye.

"Did you take something from this woman's son?" His mother asked.

He hesitated to answer, looking between all the companion's carefully. "No."

"He doesn't even know who my son is." Ayah growled. "I mean he has taken from every kid in Whiterun. I could be anyone's mother."

The boy stared at her blankly, sporting the same disgusted look as his mother.

"I'm Kodlak's mother." Ayah informed him.

"Kodlak?" The kid suddenly reeled. "That kid gave me this black eye!"

"He what?!" His mother screeched. For a second time, the companion's winced in unison.

"Good. You deserve it." Vilkas spat angrily.

"You have some nerve!" Bojack's mother spat back. "You come here, accusing my son of stealing, when it's you're boy that's the bully!"

"My son is a companion!" Ayah yelled back at her. "His heart is good and he's not got a bad bone in his body. You're son's a bloody menace! He's taken from all the younger kids, beaten some up. He even burned a toy of a little girl I know. And you, his ignorant mother, refuse to acknowledge his bad behaviour, probably because he's learnt it from **you**!"

The force of Ayah last word caused a blast of air that nearly took Bojack and his mother off their feet.

"Ayah calm down." Farkas cooed softly, his hand reaching for her hip.

"No!" She snapped. "I want the necklace he's taken from Kodlak and I want it now!"

All the shouting had attracted a lot of attention, unbeknownst to those actually arguing. A small crowd had gathered at a distance, all watching eagerly and talking amongst themselves.

Two town guards pushed their way through the crowd and headed for the house, walking up the steps and pushing between the two parties.

"What's going on here?" One asked.

"This woman's son-!" Ayah began, but was quickly cut off by Bojack's mother.

"This woman has come to our house, accused and threatened my little boy and I want her removed from my property this instant!"

The guards looked at each other before looking at Ayah in surprise. "Harbinger?"

Inhaling deeply through her nose, nostrils flaring, Ayah forced herself to relax.

"This woman's son has taken something that was very precious to Kodlak. We have people that have seen him do it. We came here to try and get the issue resolved, but this..._woman_..."

"And we use that term loosely..." Vilkas grumbled.

"started screaming. We just want Kodlak's necklace back. That's all."

The guards looked back toward Bojack and his mother expectantly. "Well?"

"I won it fair and square!" Bo protested. "I said I could win him in a fight and I did. He had to give me his necklace because I won!"

"Childish games." The female guard shrugged.

"That necklace wasn't something Kodlak could just give away. It was _very_ important." Aela pressed.

"Well maybe he shouldn't have bet it then." Bo sneered at the flame haired woman.

"Well maybe you shouldn't be fighting kids half your age." Aela sneered back mockingly.

"Listen, just hand it over and we can forget all this. You're all making a scene." The male guard said calmly.

"I don't have it any more." Bo said defiantly. "So I can't give it back."

Ayah's stomach dropped out at the thought that the ring was lost forever. She immediately worried how Kodlak would function without the power of the ring keeping him in check.

Her face must have reflected her worry, because Farkas's hand reached for hers and held it tightly.

"Is that so..." Aela drawled, her lips a thin, tight line. Leaning in, the huntress looked the boy straight in the eyes with an intense green gaze. "Well lets hope you can get it back...because that ring means the difference between us leaving your family alone or me talking to a person that can call up some werewolves to come and eat you up, little boy." She whispered.

Bo's face dropped and he paled considerably.

"Let's go." Aela stood straight again and turned on her heel to head off back to Jorrvaskr.

Reluctantly, Ayah followed, her heart weeping at the thought that her son might loose his mind.

-oOo-

"I locked the door." Aela said as she came to sit beside her harbinger on the stone ledge of the Skyforge. "He was quiet again when blew out the candle. He hasn't had nightmares in a long time."

"It's the ring. He needs it back." Ayah whined into her hands covering her face.

"We dealt with it. He'll be fine Ayah." Aela tried to reassure her.

"We weren't born with the blood. The link with Hircine must be stronger with him." The younger woman sighed and raked her fingers down her face in despair.

Night had fallen over Whiterun and all was quiet. Well, all but Kodlak's room. The boy, after some struggle with his father, had been put to bed. It hadn't been long until his nightmares had returned and he woke howling for the second time that night.

"You really think he still has the ring?"

"Of course he does." Aela waved her hand casually. "Who could he give it to? The boy has no friends. He can't sell it. So where would it go, other than in his draw or a box in his room?"

Ayah nodded, thoughtfully rolling a mead bottle between her hands.

"I have no doubt he'll give it back soon. Then we just need to make sure Kodlak can never take it off. Maybe we could do what Teagan did with his earrings and have Eorlund weld it onto a necklace and onto his neck so no matter what, it'll never come off."

"We have to get it back first..." Ayah muttered absently. Her mind suddenly sparked and Ayah turned, looking at the huntress with narrowed eyes. "What did you say to that kid anyway? He looked terrified when we walked away."

Aela gave a long, lazy smirk and shrugged a shoulder. "Oh nothing really...Only that if we didn't get the ring back I'd be having a chat with someone that knows a pack of werewolves that eat naughty little boys."

Ayah felt a laugh bubble up inside her and didn't bother to restrain it when it broke free. "Aela! You can't say that!"

"I can and I did." The huntress chuckled. "Anyway, it seemed to work."

"Excuse me?"

The women's conversation was interrupted by a soft, yet confident voice from below them on the path. Aela and Ayah sat up straight to look down on two Nord girls that lived in the wind district.

Rose and Petunia were sisters that belonged to another new family to come to Whiterun. The older girl, Rose was bold and bright. She often came to Jorrvaskr to see Sharn. Her little sister petunia was a lot younger and often followed her sister about carrying a dolly in a bright blue dress.

They were sweet girls, always polite and kind. They lived with their mother, their father having been killed fighting for the Stormcloaks.

Both were dressed well and and pleasant and they were very much welcomed by the companions.

"Harbinger? Lady Huntress?" Rose called up to them. "We have something for you."

Aela and Ayah looked at one another before Ayah got to her feet. "I'll be right down." She descended the stone steps and walked toward the two girls stood on the path. "You're up late."

"We're about to go home to bed actually." Rose smiled and held out her hand to Ayah. The Harbinger held her own hand out and Rose dropped Kodlak's ring and leather braid into her palm.

"Bo threw this at me this afternoon and told me to bring it to you. It's the necklace he cheated to get."

"Cheated?" Ayah clutched the jewellery tightly to her chest and gave the girl a puzzled look.

"He said if he won, he wanted Kodlak's necklace. If Kodlak won, he got Bo's pocket money." Rose shrugged one shoulder and took her little sisters hand. "He was losing horribly, so he got his brother to tip Kodlak."

"I knew the boy was better than that." Aela called down from the forge.

"So did I." Ayah smiled softy, relief washing over her.

"He gave him a great shiner though, didn't he!?" Rose laughed.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

One week later.

The snow was falling heavily as Ayah stepped out the front door of Hjerim, her house in Windhelm. The snow hadn't let up in days and the Harbinger gave a shudder as she locked the door.

A number of the companions were staying in the city, working on jobs in the surrounding area, making it more sensible to move all operations to Windhelm temporarily. They'd been staying at Ayah's home as well as Candlehearth hall, the place Ayah was currently heading to in order to keep an eye on her ranks.

Tugging on the bear skin around her shoulders, she began to trudge through the snow, down the steps and on toward the graveyard.

The blood from the murders that had taken place in Windhelm had long since been washed away, but the memories were still everywhere.

Ayah walked silently through the resting place of many of the city's dead, her eyes homing in on a not so weathered headstone.

"Susanna the Wicked" It read.

Her stride slowed to a stop and Ayah gazed down on the grave with a cold, blank expression. The girl had been the one that worked at Candlehearth. The one that had served Ayah her first drink in the city...The one whose murder had dragged Ayah into a sticky situation with a crazed wannabe Necromancer.

She spared the grave one last glance before continuing through the cold night toward the inn to meet her shield siblings. Farkas, Vilkas and Aela had left Hjerim earlier that night, taking Kodlak with them to Candlehearth. Ayah had stayed behind to finish enchanting something, telling them she would join them later.

She climbed the stone steps out of the cemetery and turned toward the Inn, stood proudly before of her.

Ayah happened to glance over at the gates, noting two men stood talking to the guards, wearing the strangest garb she'd ever seen. Their faces were obscured by strange masks, which had tentacle like appendages coming off them at all different directions.

Her nose wrinkled slightly in disgust, but the Dragonborn shrugged and slipped into Candlehearth hall without giving them a second though.

She missed the guards finally noticing her and pointing her out to the two strangers.

-oOo-

"I feel like I've been trampled by a mammoth..." Torvar croaked from his position, face down on the table surface.

"You look like it too...Though, you always look like it." Njada grunted spitefully.

"Leave him alone Njada." Lovejoy frowned. "He's not very well..." She added, gently petting Torvar's hair. The older woman gave a sneer and glared at the little imperial but said nothing more.

"I can't believe this. You get sick every time we bring you here Torvar..." Aela huffed, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Not _every time_." He argued back weakly, his voice muffled by the wood of the table. "It's just the bad weather...It doesn't agree with me."

"You're a Nord..." Vilkas snorted a laugh.

"Aye, but I come from the sunnier, less **FREEZING COLD** part of Skyrim." Torvar ground out as he stared hard at his full tankard of ale. It killed him every time he became sick, because he couldn't taste anything and therefore found no joy in drinking.

"All of Skyrim is freezing cold in my opinion." Hingor called over from the fireplace where he'd seated himself to keep warm.

"I must agree..."

Everyone turned to see Ayah creep in from the darkness that covered the very corners of the room. Even though she'd taken on a full role in the companions over the past few years, she still hadn't lost her assassin's temperament and still insisted on creeping around in dark shadows when given the chance.

"Ayah!" Lovejoy beamed. "You made it finally. We worried you weren't coming at all!"

"She's been fussing over that bloody sword she's been tryin to enchant." Vilkas murmured around his tankard.

"I almost had it." The Harbinger said quietly as she shrugged off her bear skin. "I think I need a grand soul gem."

"Ma!" Kodlak cried, his mouth full of sweet roll. He'd not stopped eating since arriving at the Inn and, much to his delight, the women working at Inns around Skyrim such as Candlehearth, liked to coo and make a fuss over him. More so now he was accompanying his mother and father and had his own little wolf armour.

He'd disliked it greatly at first but soon found that most women they met on their travels melted and couldn't help but fawn over him about of how adorable he looked in his little warrior gear.

This left him with an endless supply of sweet things and attention that were often heaped on him as the women fussed over him.

"Hello my little one." Ayah smiled and leant down to kiss her son in his seat. Kodlak returned the affection, leaving his mother's cheek sticky and sugar coated. "Ew..." The harbinger laughed as she wiped her cheek. "You're all sticky."

"He hasn't stopped eating yet." Ria yawned across from the little boy.

"He's been through two plates of sweet rolls, a whole line of long taffy, four boiled creme treats and a small jar of honey. His teeth'll fall out at this rate." Aela laughed lightly.

Ayah looked down at her son in surprise and without hesitation, took the honey nut treat he'd begun munching on out of his hand. "I think you've had enough son."

Kodlak whined and fidgeted in his chair, reaching for the honeyed treat. "Momma! Let me finish, please?"

Ayah shook her head and offered the treat to her husband. Farkas took it with a smile and finished off what his son had started. "I think your father should have it." Ayah told her son as Farkas ate.

Kodlak immediately began to pout. "I didn't eat everything..." He whined. "I saved you a sweet roll Momma." He sheepishly pushed a near empty plate toward Ayah, offering her the only sweet treat left on it.

Ayah couldn't help but smile. "Thank you sweet one." She kissed his cheek again and took the sweet roll. She brought it to her lips and took a large bite.

"Glad to see he's sharing something tonight..." Vilkas chuckled.

Ayah hummed thoughtfully and pulled out a seat beside her son. Once seated, Kodlak fidgeted across to curl up in his mother's lap. Without thinking, Ayah wrapped her arms around the boy, once she'd finished the sweet roll, her fingers gently stroking through his thick mane of black hair as she rocked him. She kissed his head and rested her cheek against his hair.

The little boy smiled happily and snaked his small arms around his mother's torso as far as he could reach.

"I love you so much darling." She murmured against his hair.

"I love you too momma." Came his muffled reply.

"But..." Ayah smiled. "You need to stop eating so much sweet stuff." Glancing over at her husband, Ayah reached out to prod his muscular arm with a slender finger. "And you need to watch him."

"I am watching him." Farkas frowned, scratching his stubbly chin.

"You've let him eat his way through two plates of sweet rolls. That's not watching him."

"It is." Farkas replied. "I watched him eat them."

Ayah rolled her eyes and gave a light chuckle at her husband's lazy approach to parenting.

It wasn't that Farkas was a bad father. Kodlak was his world. Well, a big part of his world. The two were very close and despite Farkas's lack of experience of what a good father should be because of his and Vilkas's childhood, the hulking nord seemed to take to it with a natural ease.

Trouble was, he was never the bad guy. If there was punishment to be dolled out, it was Ayah or sometimes Vilkas and Aela that had to do it. Kodlak got angry with them and never Farkas.

Ayah continued to stroke her son's hair as she gazed about the table. When her eyes came to rest on Torvar, her hand paused and a scowl curved her lips.

"What's the matter with you?" She asked him pointedly.

"He's feeling a little under the weather." Lovejoy answered for him, giving the Harbinger a half smile and a slight shrug.

A groan escaped her and Ayah looked over at Aela, the two women sharing a knowing glance.

"That's ridiculous. Every time we've brought you here Torvar, you end up with something wrong." Ayah snapped.

"It's the-"

"WEATHER!" A number of companions around the table shouted and burst into laughter.

"Aye well..." The Harbinger gave a sceptical look. "If you're insistent that the weather makes you sick, I'll pay a coach to take you back to Jorrvaskr and you can stay, confined to your room, until you're better."

"Confined!?" Torvar suddenly yelped, sitting bolt up right.

"Confined to your room." Ayah repeated. "If you're so desperately sick that you can't even drink your mead, you should stay in bed...and not go to the tavern...or _work... _With immediate effect, I'm cancelling all you're contracts and I'd like them distributed out between the whelps please Farkas." Ayah smiled over to him. Farkas smiled back and nodded without a word.

"But...But!" Torvar stuttered pathetically. "I need the money! If I don't work, I don't get the coin!"

"You're sick." Aela sneered. "Why would you possibly want the coin? You can't drink..."

Torvar growled and grunted, muttering as he glared at Ayah, then the huntress. "I'm going to bed." He huffed, getting up from his seat with a sniff before wiping his nose on the back of his hand.

"Good." Ayah called after him as he began to walk away. "Get some rest. I'll have to coach waiting for you in the morning!"

Kodlak, still in his mother's arms, tugged on his wolf skin hood while watching Torvar. Once the man was out of sight, the little boy looked up at his mother who was smiling and laughing about the whole incident.

"Are you really gonna send him home momma?" He asked her.

Ayah smiled down at her son, leaning down to nuzzle noses with him to make him giggle. "If Torvar can't work, he's not any use to us and he may get hurt."

"How about you take his contracts Kodlak?" Vilkas smirked, hunched over the table to watch his little nephew.

Kodlak's head spun around on his shoulders, a great big grin on his face. "Can I?!" He beamed. "Can I momma?" He asked Ayah excitedly, turning back to face her.

"We'll see darling." She cooed gently and stroked her fingers through his mass of hair yet again.

"What jobs did Torvar have?" Njada asked slyly. "Not that I'm interested or anything..."

"Oh no, of course not." Mog grunted from her slumped position against the wooden wall. "You're not interested in whether he's getting harder, tougher, _higher paid _jobs at all, are you?"

The two women shot each other angry glances and growled in unison.

Farkas, completely oblivious to the flying of sparks, rummaged around in his armour, looking for something. His tongue stuck out as he fidgeted, his hands patting his pockets and torso in search of whatever it was. Eventually, he found it and pulled out a balled up piece of paper from his boot.

Flattening it out as best he could, he wrinkled his nose as he read.

"Torvar had a couple of bandit camps to clear. A giant and a skeever den." He said, still looking at the paper. "I suppose Kodlak could take on the giant..."

Silence fell over the companions as they stared at the oldest twin blankly or in disbelief. Ayah pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed softly while shaking her head.

"How about he take's the skeevers darling..." She gently suggested.

"Aye. I suppose he could do those too once he's finished with the giant." Farkas smiled innocently, forgetting his son's age or inexperience completely.

"How about he just does the skeevers, Farkas?" Vilkas drawled, not too impressed with his brother's lack of thinking.

-oOo-

Kodlak pulled off his boots and tossed them into the corner of the room. His armour and leather trousers soon followed, leaving the little boy to crawl into bed in his cotton shirt.

Ayah smiled as she watched her son before leaning down to tuck the furs around him.

"Momma?" He asked as she sat on the edge of his bed. Hjerim was large enough that the little boy could have his very own room for once, unlike back at Jorrvaskr, where he was forced to sleep with the other whelps.

"Yes, my heart." She smiled down at him adoringly.

Kodlak fidgeted and kicked about under the covers as he got comfortable. "Can I have a story?" He yawned and turned onto his side to face his mother while he hugged his pillow.

The Harbinger thought for a moment before nodding. "Just a short one. Which story would you like to hear?" Absently, her gloveless hand moved to stroke her son's cheek.

Her son didn't hesitate with his answer, having already had it in mind. "Tell me about when we went to Sovngarde and fought Alduin!" He grinned and wriggled long ways on the bed to lay his head on his mother's lap.

With a soft laugh, Ayah lifted him and righted him in the bed. "Settle pup." She chuckled. "And you mean when I went to Sovngarde and fought Alduin and you tagged along?"

Kodlak giggled and squeezed his pillow. "Did not! We both fought him."

"I didn't see you swinging a sword out there!" His mother growled playfully and poked his side, making him squirm.

Kodlak laughed and flailed, kicking his covers off in the process. Ayah rolled her eyes and replaced them over him, tucking him in once more.

"Tell me." He smiled sweetly once he was settled again.

"Alright." She kissed his head. "But you have to promise to sleep once I finish."

Kodlak nodded and Ayah hoped he'd keep his promise...Not that you could really rely on the word of a five year old child.

She and Farkas needed some...time... And it was beginning to become difficult with Kodlak's constant need for attention. The little boy had a knack of being able to put a dampener on any kind of intimacy between his parents and it was beginning to bother his father.

"That means _staying in bed _tonight. _All night_." She told him firmly. He nodded again quickly, still grinning and snuggled close to his pillow as his mother began.

"Well, as you already know, from the countless time's I've told you before." She smirked down at the boy. "Alduin was a fierce and terrible dragon, known as the world eater because..."

"Because the world was his favourite food!" Kodlak laughed loudly. "Like blood is Babette's!"

Hushing him, Ayah nodded. "Aye, that's right. He ate worlds and the souls of the dead and all other dragon's feared him for his powerful thu'um."

Kodlak wasn't new to this story. It was his favourite. All other stories paled in comparison to the story his mother would regale to him every now and again. At his request of course. All other stories he heard were either made up or over exaggerated in order to stroke the teller's ego, but this one, he'd lived through. Sort of.

He often liked to tell the other children this story. How he'd been to Sovngarde and back.

"...You were a tiny baby within my womb and I promised your father I'd keep you safe." Ayah whispered and leant to kiss her son's nose. She could already see sleep tugging at his eyelids, though he struggled to fight it off.

"The next morning I climbed onto the back of Odahviing and left for Skuldafn, Alduin's lair."

By the time Ayah had made it to Shor's hall in the story, Kodlak had already curled up and gone to sleep. His mother pet his hair in silence as she watched his eyelid twitch and flutter as he dreamed. The ring of Hircine lay against his throat, protecting him from his beastly nightmares that the Daedra liked to taunt him with.

"Good night my little wolf." Ayah sighed and kissed his head before standing and creeping from the room.

-oOo-

The Harbinger and Assassin slipped into the master bedroom without a sound, closing the door silently behind her.

Farkas was already in bed, though he obviously wasn't sleeping. His armour was nearly propped up against the wall near his side of the bed and he craned his neck to look at his wife as her shadow passed over the wall.

"Is he asleep?" He asked quietly, his voice containing a hopeful expectancy.

"Out like a light." Ayah replied, just as quiet and began to slip out of her own armour. Her back was turned as Farkas suddenly sat up in bed and climbed out. She was down to her corset and leather trousers when she was unexpectedly grabbed around the waist.

She gasped and went to struggle, but was pressed, face first, up against the wall before she could even start.

Farkas's breath travelled down her neck before his hot mouth finally touched her skin that joined her neck and shoulder. The simple action caused her to tremble and easily submit as he pinned her hands above her head, palms pressed flat against the wood.

A feeble cry left her lips as Farkas's free hand tore at the laces of her corset and once loose enough, tore the material free. He tossed it aside without a second glance, his hand grasping at her bare breast with a desperate touch.

"F-Farkas..." She whimpered, her skin prickling at his rough touch. The only reply came in the form of a low, hungry growl as her husband began to bite at the flesh of her neck. Ayah gasped again, her eyes growing wide and every nerve in her body beginning to crackle with excitement.

Farkas's weather-worn hand left her breast, skating over the trembling skin of his wife's stomach with the lightest of touches. The callous pads of his finger's traced the silvery scars that crossed her skin, trophies of battles won.

Ayah pressed her forehead to the wall, unable to fight off her mate's lust-filled affections.

"I love you..." Farkas panted against her ear, his stubble tickling the soft skin of her ear and making her shudder. His left hand continued to creep downward while the right held her wrists against the wall, leaving her helpless and at his mercy.

She may have been his harbinger by day, but by night, he was alpha.

The softest moan left Ayah's lips as Farkas's fingers slipped under the waistband of her leather trousers. Her hips pushed back, forcing themselves against his with need. Farkas pressed his own throbbing need back against her, another growl rumbling from his chest and his teeth latching onto her earlobe.

His bare foot pushed at Ayah's inner ankle aggressively, forcing her legs apart and allowing him better access. His wife jerked and growled, his hand slipping between her legs and began gently probing.

The companion's eyes fell closed and he buried his nose in his wife's hair as he listened to her soft mews of pleasure. His fingers teased her with confidence after years of practice. He was a master manipulator when it came to his wife's body by then. He'd had long enough to explore every inch, committing it all to memory.

There was a sudden creaking of floorboards outside their room and the pair froze, their breath held as they waited for the door to open.

"Gods be damned!" Teagan cursed after tripping on the stairs, dropping his sword in his drunken state. The weapon slid back down the wooden stairs and Teagan staggered to retrieve it.

Farkas and Ayah released their collective breath and Ayah took the opportunity to break her husband's hold. With ease, she slipped her wrists from his grip and pulled his hand from her trousers before turning, her back pressing against the wall. Her hands grabbed his hips and pulled him close, her lips catching his hungrily.

Farkas smiled against his wife's lips, his hands reaching between them to open the laces of her leather trousers. He had no intention of being disturbed that night. It had been far too long.

-oOo-

Njada irritably tapped her foot as she stood waiting for her Harbinger and younger shield sibling Ria at the gates of Windhelm.

"Did you pick up the health potions?" Ayah asked the other woman, Ria nodding in return.

"Aye."

"Did you remember a map?" She continued to quiz her shield sister, rummaging through her own pack as they walked.

"I brought two!" Ria smiled, quite pleased with herself.

"Will you two hurry up!" Njada snapped, finally tired of waiting. Ayah didn't usually company them on tasks, but with Torvar being sent home, it left some open spaces. Vilkas and Farkas were getting ready to head out with Mog and Lovejoy. They planned on wiping out a population of bandits that had sprung up not fair from the city.

Ayah, Ria and Njada were going to tackle a falmer den. Aela and Hingor were to take on Kodlak's giant. And Kodlak, much to his disappointment was left with Teagan to fight the Skeevers living under a local shop.

Needless to say, Njada wasn't used to being told what to do or having someone there to direct her. She wasn't a whelp any more, but with the Harbinger travelling with them, she'd have to do as she was told.

Ayah made a snorting sound at the older companion's protesting and stopped mid step, if only to upset her further.

"Ria do you have any-!"

Before she could finish her sentence, her shoulder was firmly grasped from behind and Ayah spun to see one of the men from the day before, his macabre mask causing the hair on the back of her neck to prickle.

"Can I help you?" She ground out, pulling her shoulder free of the stranger's grip and stepping away.

At that moment, Aela, Farkas, Vilkas and the others were exciting the Inn, their attention becoming drawn to their Harbinger and the stranger in the strange mask.

"You. You're the one they call Dragonborn..." The stranger hissed, his voice laced with Venom.

"So they say..." Ayah's eyes narrowed and she watched the man reach for the sword at his side.

"Then it is too late..." The second man seemed to appear from nowhere, standing between Ayah, Ria and Njada. The two other companions instantly released their weapons, sensing something was off.

"The lie has already taken root in the hearts of men. So we shall expose them to the falseness in their hearts by tearing out yours, deceiver! " He cried and a scream rang out from a female witness as the man lunged at Ayah. Without hesitation, she dropped her pack and pulled free her glass sword to defend herself. Her masked attackers blade narrowly missed her arm and hit the blade of her glass sword with such force, it nearly took the weapon from her hands. "When Lord Miraak appears, all shall bare witness. None shall stand to oppose him!"

Ria and Njada took on the other man as Ayah fought. The second man easily dodged Ria's somewhat clumsy attacks, but while dodging hers, walked straight into Njada's more accurate strikes.

"Ayah!" Aela jumped from the steps of Candlehearth and ran toward the fighting. Ayah hissed in pain as her attacker's blade skated across her hip slicing through the soft leather there and into her flesh. stinging pain bloomed quickly, but Ayah returned the favour to the over stretched man by slamming her sword awkwardly into his gut.

The man made a gagging sound from behind his mask and blood began to dribble from under the distorted disguise, giving Ayah had just enough time to grope for the handle of her Blade of Woe. Crossing it over her body, her let out a yell before forcing the blade through the mask, the impact shattering the false face.

Behind her, Ria yelped as her mighty swing caused her to topple forward. Vilkas had spent many, many hours trying to teach her the proper way to hold her sword, but in the heat of battle, she tended to forget. She hit the floor,wincing as her elbows hit the stone. She didn't have time to notice the man she'd been attempting to hit hovering over her, his blade ready to cut her in half.

"Oh no you don't!" Njada snarled and slashed out at him. Her Skyforge steel sword easily cut off the man's head, releasing a spray of blood as his head was severed from his body cleanly.

"Ayah?!" Aela grasped the now dead man and hurled him backward. His body hit the floor with a sickening thud, the little dragonborn's blades still sticking out of the corpse."Are you ok?"

Ayah nodded, glancing back at Njada and Ria. "I'm fine. What about you two?" When the two other women nodded, Ayah turned her attention down to her side. "I think he caught me, but it's nothing serious." She murmured as she examined the slice that had split her armour.

"What was that all about?" Vilkas appeared behind the huntress, stepping over the body of the man Ayah had just killed with a disgusted expression. Farkas did the same, their young son in his arms. Kodlak looked over his father's shoulder sheepishly at the dead man, his eyes growing wide.

"He asked me if I was Dragonborn. I told his yes and he went...Well, you saw." She said, waving her hand.

Aela hummed softly, her eyes going to the first of the men. Stalking over to his body, she knelt down and began to rummage, a task usually her Harbinger was the first to undertake.

"Have you seen this?" She asked after pulling out a note from his pocket. She skimmed over it quickly, startled by what she found.

"Show me." Vilkas snatched it from her, reading the note aloud. "Board the vessel Northern Maiden docked at Raven rock. Take it to Windhelm, then begin your search. Kill the false Dragonborn known as Ayah before she reaches Solstheim. Return with word of your success, and Miraak shall be most pleased."

"False...Dragonborn?..." Ayah blinked slowly, her bran struggling to process the information The companions looked blankly between themselves, everyone trying desperately to make sense of the note.


	4. Chapter 4

chapter 4

"I don't understand..." Farkas whined, scratching his head in confusion. He was finding it harder than anyone to understand why anyone would want to attack his wife.

"They don't think I'm the Dragonborn, or they don't believe?" Ayah scowled, shifting in discomfort while Lovejoy cleaned the wound on her hip.

After the attack, while the guards cleaned away the bodies, the companions had returned to Candlehearth, shaken and unnerved. Kodlak hadn't said a word and sat, ghostly pale, in his father's lap.

"They came all the way from Solstheim just to attack you?" Vilkas mused. "Have you ever been there?"

"I don't even know where it is AH!" Ayah yelped and winced. The mixture Lovejoy was applying burned and stung.

"Whose Miraak?" Aela was reading the note for a fourth time, trying to pick out anything that could be useful.

"I don't know." Ayah growled, glaring at Lovejoy. The young girl hummed softly as she finished up cleaning the wound and began to thread the needle ready to stitch it closed.

"Maybe he's something to do with the Daedra?" Aela looked up from the blood stained paper. "I wouldn't be surprised."

"Daedra?!" Vilkas looked horrified over at the huntress.

"Solstheim is notorious for daedra related happenings." The huntress shrugged.

"It's notorious for being the playground of Hircine." Teagan shuddered.

"And how would you know that?" Ayah cocked a curious brow at her cousin. Teagan shrugged, his face deadly serious.

"I went there once with a band of Reavers. We were interested in the mines there. We planned to set up camp in an old tomb that was linked to one of the mines and steal the ore as it was being mined."

"You're such a lovely person Teagan. I don't know why you didn't become a companion sooner." Njada spat.

"Hey!" He spat back. "I'm not proud of what I did. But it was who I was. Still am a little." He huffed. "Anyway, we planned on taking the ore. But once we'd landed on the island..." He shuddered a second time and glared down at the mead tankard in front of him. "We were attacked. We were so unprepared it was ridiculous and most of the men were slaughtered. I didn't see what did it, not face on. But the creatures were...were crazed! Crazed beasts with the organization of men!...It was insane."

The members of the original circle looked between each other. It sounded like an attack by werewolves. Feral ones maybe.

Teagan noticed the look Aela and this cousin were sharing and shook his head. "Its not what you think. They weren't wolves."

On his father's lap, Kodlak's ears twitched and his interest was suddenly peaked. Intently, he began listening to Teagan, listening for details.

"They were bigger than wolves. Bears maybe. I didn't believe they existed."

"This is nonsense." Njada huffed.

"Is it?" Hingor interjected. "When I wrote to Ayah all those years ago, there were four of us heading to join the companions. Only three of us got to Jorrvaskr though. The fourth was eaten by a werevulture I tell you!"

Njada snorted and rolled her eyes. She couldn't believe her ears. "_NONSENSE." _She spat again as she stood. "If this is what we're going to do all damn day, I'm going to my room."

Without another glance to her shield siblings, Njada left and table and headed for her shared room.

"Maybe you should join her Ria." Ayah murmured lowly. "You too Lovejoy."

Both women looked between themselves and Ayah before standing silently and following after their older shield sister, once Lovejoy had finished stitching of course.

Mog, who'd been stood against the wall, quietly listening to the conversation, cast Ayah a glance before nodding. She knew when it was time for her to leave and grabbed hold of Hingor as she headed for the steps. The elf wriggled and struggled, cursing and yelling to be let go, all the way down the steps.

Kodlak remained silent and still. He didn't want his mother to notice he was still sitting there on his father's lap and send him away too. He wanted to know what uncle Teagan was talking about.

"I knew there were werewolves on Solstheim." Aela whispered once the non-beast blood members had left. "But werebears too? Perhaps other things?"

Kodlak's little heart fluttered with excitement. This place. Solstheim. It sounded amazing. There were others like him and his family there!

"There are really werewolves on Solstheim?" Farkas asked dumbly. The huntress nodded.

"Aye. The place used to be crawling with those with beast blood. I'm not sure how many are left now though. Teagan? When did this attack happen?"

Teagan thought for a moment, absently scratching his throat. "I dunno...'bout six, maybe seven years ago? It wasn't long before you all found me."

"Seven years?" Ayah sighed heavily. "A whole population could be wiped out in a year and a half."

Her cousin grunted and threw his arms in the air in defence. "I dunno then Ayah! That was just what happened to me and when. I dunno about anything else. I'm not an expert!"

Vilkas had been silent for a long time, his mind whirling as he thought. His finger tapped his bottom lip absently and his eyes narrowed on an empty plate on the table.

"The Northern Maiden."

"What?" Aela, Teagan, Ayah and Farkas asked in unison.

"The Northern maiden. The ship they used to get here from Solstheim. We could go to the docks and ask the sailors."

"Ah Villy. I knew we dragged you around with us for a reason!" Teagan laughed.

"Shut up Teagan." Vilkas ground out, sparing the man a dirty look.

-oOo-

"Excuse me?"

The sailors aboard The Northern Maiden paused in their work to look over to the docks.

"I was wondering if you could help me." Vilkas called over to them from the dockside. "I need some information on some men you brought over from Solstheim."

The sailors mumbled and muttered between themselves before one of them finally turned to Vilkas, peering at the companion over the top of a crate he was carrying.

"You'll need to talk to the captain" He said, nodding over to a blonde haired nord man carrying a small axe and currently working on fixing a broken barrel.

Vilkas glanced over his shoulder to Farkas, Ayah, Aela, Teagan and Kodlak before jumping from the dock, onto the boat with ease. Farkas Followed, as well as Aela and Teagan, who beckoned Kodlak to come too. The little boy bit his lip and took a huge leap, landing safely on the boat.

Ayah stood hovering on the dock, obviously reluctant to follow.

"Come on Ay!" Teagan laughed and held his hands out to her.

"I'll wait here..." She murmured and stood back from the edge.

"Suit yourself!" Teagan shrugged and gently nudged Kodlak forward. Her son looked back at Ayah curiously as he was lead away and Ayah forced a smile to reassure him.

Vilkas spoke with the captain, Gjalund Salt-Sage, for several minutes, before finally shaking the man's hand once they were done. He turned, expecting to speak with Ayah, but found the Harbinger hadn't joined them on the vessel. He gave her a puzzled look as he walked back toward the dock and stepped off the boat.

"Not one for the sea I take it." He Joked.

Ayah, to his surprise, gave a sheepish shrug and turned her eyes away from the ship, down toward her hands.

"Maybe a little bit. What did he tell you?"

"He said that those men boarded at a place called Raven rock in Solstheim. They'd paid in advance and spent most of their journey to themselves.

"Great. That's truly useful." The harbinger frowned.

"He did say he'd take us to Raven rock if we needed to investigate though." Vilkas told her. "I suggest we consider it. We don't want any more attacks."

Farkas carried Kodlak off the ship and over to his brother and wife. He chuckled as his son took a strand of his messy black hair and tickled Farkas's nose with it. Gently, he swatted at his son's hand, smirking as the boy dropped the hair and covered his eyes with his small hands playfully.

"Now I can't see." Farkas laughed.

"If you can't see me, you can't hit me." Kodlak grinned.

"But what if I fall into the water?" Farkas teased his son by lifting his foot and dangling it over the edge of the dock, just above the water.

Kodlak let out a squeal of fear and released his father's face to wrap his little arms around Farkas's neck for safety.

"Its alright pup." Farkas chuckled as he comforted his boy, kissing his head and stroking his back. "I wouldn't let you fall in."

"I think we need to take a moment to consider our options before we go rushing into anything Vilkas." Ayah muttered, watching her husband and son.

-oOo-

Teagan's fist hit Ayah's dining table with enough force to topple the tankards sitting on it, causing the contents to spill everywhere.

"Hey!" Vilkas yelped as his tankard fell into his lap, covering the companion in mead.

"I can't believe this!" Teagan yelled across the table at Ayah.

"Stop shouting!" She hissed back, bracing her knuckles against the wood to lean in.

"No!" Teagan shouted louder than before. "I can't believe you're doing this to me! I've been there, I know about the place. I've _seen _things! You can't just leave me here to...To baby sit!"

"I will not have your crazy antics endangering us or my son!" Ayah raged. "You're a liability Teagan and I will not have it. I'm taking Aela, Vilkas and Farkas and you will stay to look after Kodlak while I'm gone!"

"But I wanna come to the wolf island too..." Kodlak whined softly from the wooden stair he'd perched on when the shouting began.

"No. No! And that is final. Kodlak you will remain here with Teagan." His mother told him forcefully as she turned to face him. "Do I make myself clear?"

"Maybe it would be good for him..." The huntress drawled from her slumped position at the table. She'd been watching in amusement all night as the cousins argued over whether Teagan should come or not. "Kodlak would get some experience in the field." She added, looking over her nails.

"No!" Ayah snapped at the older woman. "Absolutely not! We both know that island is under Hircine's thumb Aela. What kind of stupid idea is it to even consider taking my son, who has such strong wolf blood, into that? It's bad enough we're going. Though I have no doubt you're looking forward to it." She spat in the heat of her anger.

"Hey!" The Huntress finally snarled, sitting up and placing her hands on the table. "You forget who you're talking to Ayah. Don't you dare speak to me like that!"

"Well don't you dare suggest such ridiculous ideas!" Ayah snarled back.

"Alright, that's enough." Vilkas held an arm in front of Aela to keep her from lunging from her seat, Farkas doing the same for Ayah. "I must agree with Ayah. Its best that Kodlak remains on the mainland. Gods only know what havoc could come if Hircine were to take control of the boy."

"I'd kill him myself..." Ayah hissed quietly. "No one takes my baby."

"Now that I'd like to see." Teagan chuckled to himself. "And the strangest thing is, I believe she would."

"Don't think you're off the hook!" Ayah's attention suddenly returned to the former bandit. "I mean it Teagan. You will stay here and you will watch my son with your life, or so help me I'll make your life a misery when I return!" She growled at him, her eyes burning.

The flames that danced in her eyes put an end to any and all argument Teagan had. But it did not dampen his plan.

-oOo-

In the early hours, Kodlak had crawled into his mother and father's bed once again and had curled up between them. Luckily, his mother and father had enjoyed some alone time earlier in the night, when their child had been fast asleep in his own bed.

But this didn't mean Kodlak's sudden intrusion had been welcomed.

Kodlak had gone to his mother's side of the bed, tugging at the furs that covered her to be let in. That had stirred Ayah from her sleep and all the fidgeting the boy made as he climbed into bed with them had woken Farkas.

Now the boy's parents lay wide awake, facing one another, with Kodlak sound asleep between them in the bed.

"He can't keep doing this..." Ayah sighed quietly.

Farkas gave a grunt and gently fluffed his boy's hair as he slept. Kodlak was every bit the image of his father, without the stubble of course. The little boy had even taken his father's war paint style as his own and just like his old man, refused to wash it off most nights. It left his face dirty and grimy looking, something his mother couldn't stand and bath night at Jorrvaskr often became the comedy event of the week for the other companions as they watched Ayah forcibly cleaning her husband and son.

That night however, Kodlak had been compliant when Ayah had bathed him and his mother couldn't help but rub her finger over his dirt free cheek. Kodlak stirred a little but remained deep in slumber as she did so.

"He'll miss us while we're away." His father's tired voice rasped.

"We've been away before now." Ayah frowned, her eyes leaving her son to rest on Farkas. Her husband yawned and made a half hearted shrugging movement before settling again.

"Aye, but we weren't leaving Skyrim before." Farkas replied.

Ayah shook her head. "Is this some subtle way of trying to get me to take him with us?" She asked him frankly.

"Whut?" Farkas grunted dumbly.

"Nothing darling." She finally sighed and resigned herself to watching her son sleep. Farkas did the same, though he was still a little confused.

Silence fell over the three for a long while and Farkas eyes began to droop.

"Do you think I'm overprotective?"

Forcing his eyes open again grudgingly, Farkas looked over to Ayah, her pale blue eyes shining in the darkness of the room. He could see she was frowning, her eyes on their son. Farkas would never point it out but even though Ayah was still in her twenties, she was beginning to look weathered, much like many women in Skyrim who had burdens to bare.

He frowned as his mind began to wonder what he looked like, what with him being a good few years older.

"Farkas?"

His wife's voice cut through his thoughts and the only answer he could think to give, having forgotten her question, was a grunt.

"You weren't listening, were you?"

He looked up to answer her. To tell her he was, but suddenly lost his words when he saw his wife's faintly amused smile.

"Sorry love." He whispered shyly.

"I forgive you."

Ayah reached over Kodlak to touch her husband's prickly cheek. She wasn't surprised when his hand covered hers, holding her soft palm to his warm skin.

"Ayah?"

"Hm?"

Farkas seemed to hesitate with whatever he was going to say next. It wasn't a new thing with him and Ayah had learned to be patient with him, allowing her husband the opportunity to express himself without patronizing him by stuffing words into his mouth like his brother often did.

"I know you feel we shouldn't..." He said slowly, still chewing at his lip as he thought. "But I...Maybe we should have another child?"

Farkas's request hit Ayah like a ton of bricks and without thinking, she wrenched her hand back. She saw Farkas's sudden, sad change in expression and could only imagine what sort of horrifying look she was giving him.

"Oh Farkas." She smiled sadly, knowing she must have hurt his feelings. "I'm sorry love." She reached to stroke his cheek again and was very relieved when he leant into her touch.

She shouldn't have been as shocked as she was. She knew that. In Skyrim, it was normal for Nords to have large families, with many children. Most of it was about passing on bloodlines or keeping certain traits or careers in the family. But Ayah sensed it was more about Farkas's sweet nature than anything else.

He'd been amazing with baby Kodlak. For many nord men, it was the joy of having children, but never really having to raise them. Most of it was women's work. Farkas however, had grasped the task with both hands and had even put Ayah's nose out of joint more than once because he wanted to have a part in every aspect in his new born son's life.

She wouldn't say it out loud, but the big, foreboding nord warrior was definitely built to be a hands on father.

"You know how I feel..." Ayah sighed. Kodlak's...nature...was a heavy weight on her shoulders and she felt cornered at the thought of having another child.

Sure, she could cure herself and Farkas and their next child would be beast blood free, but that left Kodlak alone with the curse and Ayah felt choked up at the idea that she'd condemned her first born son and then abandoned him to face his fate alone.

"I don't know what to tell you..." She whispered, tears burning her eyes.

Farkas gave a slow, understanding nod and stretched his neck to kiss his wife's head gently. "Don't worry dear. I won't push." He said simply and lay back with a smile.

Ayah was astonished with just how easy Farkas got over things. Even after nearly six years of marriage, she was still finding things to be in awe of him for.

"You're...You're not upset?" She asked him dubiously.

Farkas shook his head and gave a lazily grin. "Nope. We have Kodlak and I'm happy. It would be nice to have more whelps, but I can deal."

-oOo-

Kodlak woke to an empty bed. His sensitive hearing could pick up the sound of his family already moving about Downstairs.

With a yawn and a stretch, he sat up and rubbed his eyes. His mother and father's armour was gone, as well as their weapons and Kodlak gingerly climbed out of their bed, his feet softly padding about the wooden floorboards as he shuffled from the room.

Still sleepy, he made his way across the landing, past his mother's collections of weapons and armour and down the wooden stairs, taking one stair at a time. At the bottom, an apple dumping in hand, stood his uncle Vilkas. He turned his head as the little boy neared and gave a warm smile.

"Morning lad." He chimed and forced the last of the apple dumping into his mouth, leaving his hands free to pick his Nephew up.

Vilkas squeezed the boy tight, his cold armour making Kodlak shiver. Planting a soft kiss on the boys head he carried him over to the table where his mother, father, Aela and Teagan were sitting.

"Someone slept in." Vilkas grinned and placed the boy down on his feet beside the table.

"Someone didn't sleep in his own bed again last night." Ayah muttered, reaching groom out her son's bed hair with her fingers.

"Did you have a nightmare?" Aela asked him. Kodlak shook his head and tried to lean away from his mother's hand as he fingers tugged at a knot in his hair. "Then why didn't you sleep in your own bed?"

"It was cold." He grumbled and slipped under the table, emerging on the other side beside Teagan and his father.

"That's no excuse." Aela scolded him lightly. As much as she loved Kodlak, she was sceptical of Ayah and Farkas's parenting skills, believing they were too overprotective of the boy.

Ayah doted on the child, constantly coddling and fawning over him.

Farkas was a little rougher with the boy, play fighting and roughing the lad up. But he wasn't very stern. Nord father's were meant to be the enforcers of the family. Farkas was far from forceful and often left it to the huntress, Ayah or even his brother.

In her option, they treated their son like they'd treated their puppy, Rex, before him.

Farkas grabbed the back of Kodlak's shirt, pulling the boy up and onto his lap. Kodlak laughed as his father growled at him and began tickling him playfully.

The huntress rolled her eyes at the flippancy shown to her.

"So?" Teagan looked expectantly over at Ayah.

"So what?" His cousin frowned over at him as she made a meat sandwich for her son and placed it on a plate along with an apple. "Kodlak?" She called him, holding the plate out to him on his father's lap. The child, red in the face from laughing, gratefully took the plate and began to devour the sandwich.

"So when do we set out for Solstheim?" Teagan asked with a sweet smile.

"_WE _set out late tonight. _YOU _however will stay here, remember?" Ayah ground out in her annoyance.

"Me too?" Kodlak mumbled around his sandwich.

"You're staying here too." His mother informed him.

"Awww..." He whined, pouting as his father took a bite out of his sandwich. "But I wanna see the wolves!"

"You know what a werewolf looks like Kodlak..." Ayah told him lowly. She hated talking to the little boy on the subject. But it was something unavoidable. Kodlak was both very curious, and very excited by the mention of others with beast blood. It was only natural when he himself was that way inclined. But his constant and almost desperate need to seek out others like himself was hard on Ayah.

Aela took him under her wing a lot. Even if she encouraged him in ways his mother didn't approve of. Farkas too was perfectly willing to run with his son as a wolf, just not as often as Aela. Vilkas flat out refused and Ayah could understand why.

As for herself. Well. Ayah knew her son would forever be a beast. It wasn't something they could remove like their own curses. She didn't want the child to believe he was something terrible. An abomination. But at the same time she stressed to him the need to be discreet.

When the full moon rose, Ayah happily obliged her son. But at no other point did she relent.

"Are there lots of them on that island?" He asked warily, almost sensing his mother's discomfort, but not willing to drop the subject just yet.

"Apparently so." Aela drawled.

"And werebears!" Teagan snarled playfully, snatching Kodlak from his father's lap and roughing him about while the boy laughed.

"Alright. Enough." Ayah snapped.

The room fell silent and Ayah fidgeted in her seat.

"Sorry momma..." Kodlak murmured after a while, staring down at his sandwich pitifully.

"Oh sweetheart." Ayah sighed, watching her son. "I'm not angry at you. Never think that. I just don't like...talking about things like that."Kodlak nodded and began eating his sandwich again quietly.

Feeling worse than ever, Ayah felt the start of a headache throbbing behind her eyes.

"Sooo...We definitely can't come then?" Teagan probed.

Ayah refused to answer Teagan again. She refused to acknowledged his immature attempts to get his way. Merely shaking her head, Ayah sighed heavily and shot him a warning glare.

-oOo-

"Uncle Teagan! come on!" Kodlak hissed over his shoulder as he and the older man ran through the streets that night.

Ayah and Farkas had kissed Kodlak good night and said goodbye. They weren't planning on leaving until the little boy was in bed. Much to their surprise, Teagan had offered to put him to bed and had carried him up the stairs as Kodlak's parents and companion family prepared to leave.

However. Teagan's unusual show of kindness had had an ulterior motive and no sooner had the boys been up the stairs, they'd scaled out of one of the windows, onto a lower roof and down onto the street.

Teagan had pack two bags and placed them in an alley not far from the house, ready for collecting as the pair ran to the docks.

They'd collected the bags without a hitch and were now running to beat Ayah and the others to the docks.

"Hang...on." Teagan panted pathetically behind him.

Kodlak began to slow, his frustration building at Teagan's lack of stamina. "Come on Teagan!" The little companion ground out. "Momma and papa will beat us there and then we can't go!"

Teagan swallowed thickly and nodded, pushing himself forward. "Run on ahead then. You remember where, right?"

Kodlak nodded and sped off ahead, leaving Teagan to wonder how the boy managed it. Perhaps he was getting old?

-oOo-

The companions took their time on the way to the docks. They met the others at the gates to the city and said their goodbyes. Njada, Ria, Lovejoy, Mog and Hingor were planning to continue their assignments while the Harbinger and higher circle members were away.

"Be careful." Ria murmured to Vilkas as the others talked. The younger twin cracked a slight smile and tilted her chin upward to kiss her gently.

"I wont be away long. I promise." He whispered and touched his nose to hers, watching in amusement as the imperial woman blushed.

Much to everyone's frustration, the intense relationship the pair had started when Ayah had first joined had faded somewhat and it had become strained and, at times, awkward.

Vilkas and Ria would go from being completely devoted to one another, much like Farkas and Ayah, to not being about to be in the same room as each other in a very short space of time. Many of their shield siblings were beginning to believe it was a waste of time and they should give up on the idea of being together. But Ayah was insistent that they keep trying.

Vilkas wondered if it was out of pity on her part.

Currently though, they were on good terms and their time spent in Windhelm had been pleasant with each other's company.

"I love you." Ria whispered, her hand reaching to stroke his jaw.

"And I you." Vilkas rasped back against her ear, enjoying the shiver she gave.

"You ready Vilkas?" Farkas slapped his brother's back without warning and Ria gave a yelp as the younger brother nearly toppled onto her.

Growling and clinging to Ria protectively, Vilkas shot his brother an angry glance. "Aye. Now I am."

Aela stood watching the twins with a blank expression. Fools. They were both getting soft... not that Farkas hadn't been to start with.

Two dark shadows caught her attention out of the corner of her eye and the huntress turned her head to see two figures, one larger, possibly a man and one small, possible a child, slinking through the gates that lead to the docks.

She couldn't help the smirk that crept across her face.

-oOo-

"Shsss!" Teagan slapped his hand over Kodlak's mouth as they crept between barrels and crates on the dock as the other companions were making their way down the steps, heading for the Northern maiden.

"How are we gonna get on?" Kodlak muffled against Teagan's hand.

Scowling, Teagan looked about. He noticed many of the sailors were carrying crates and barrels onto the ship, ready for the day long journey.

"Kodlak." Teagan smirked. "Trust me. Ok?"

The boy nodded and Teagan crawled through a narrow gap between the crates. He waited until it was clear and the next sailor had taken a nearby crate before motioning for his cousin's son to follow him. Kodlak kept low and quiet as he navigated the containers around him. Through the gaps he could see his mother, father and uncle stood on the dock beside the ship, his mother talking to the captain.

"I...get sea sick..." She explained, already a little green in the face.

"You're kidding." Gjalund laughed. "Nord's are born sailors."

"Aye..." Ayah scowled. "Well this one isn't. And I'm not keen on this. I'd rather take a dragon."

Kodlak paused, only for a moment to watch his mother talk. Before he'd even realised who it was, two intense green eyes peered at him through the gap he'd been spying through.

"Aela!" He gasped, nearly falling backward into the other crates.

The huntress's eyes narrowed, but surprisingly, she glanced over to some empty barrels on their sides beside the boat, as if directing him to them. Kodlak nodded quickly and crawled over to Teagan, who'd also seen the the barrels.

"Get in." Teagan grunted, stuffing Kodlak into the barrel with a squeak, along with his pack. "Now stay quiet." He whispered hastily and put the lid onto the barrel before righting it.

Next, he attempted to climb into one, but found his armour too much to fit. Teagan huffed and puffed and forced himself into the barrel with such force, it began to roll, hitting other barrels and knocking them over.

The other companions jumped and turned to see what the commotion was. Ayah's eyes widened in horror at the sight of Teagan sticking half in, half out of a barrel.

"Teagan!" She barked.

"Oh! Oh Hi Ayah!" Came his muffled reply, as he began to struggle to get out of the barrel, instead of in.

Rage suddenly flaring in her chest, the Harbinger stormed over to the barrel and slammed her foot into the wood. The barrel splintered under the force of the impact and Teagan freed himself with only minor injuries. Namely, a splinter of too.

"What are you doing here?!" She snarled down at him.

"I, er..." Teagan dusted himself off somewhat and stood, his eyes glimpsing over at the Barrel he'd stuffed Kodlak into. "I came to say goodbye!"

"From a barrel?" Vilkas cocked a sceptical brow.

"Aye. well... yea. That did look a little suspicious " The former bandit laughed and rubbed the back of his neck nervously.

"Where's Kodlak?" Ayah demanded.

"He's back at the house, sleeping..." Teagan told her quickly. He watched her eyes narrow on him and he gulped, praying she'd let it go.

"Go home and see if he's ok. I mean it Teagan, how dare you leave my son alone!" Ayah growled and Teagan almost laughed. She'd brought it!

"Aye!" He grinned. "I will! I'll go now! But Ayah..." Teagan took a casual step back, his hand tapping on Kodlak's barrel. "Remember. Everything you need is in your pack. I double checked before leaving the house. Have fun and stay safe!" He yelled, hoping Kodlak would hear him clearly through the wood.

Ayah stared at her older cousin like he'd lost his mind, but Teagan smiled and kissed her cheek as he passed, heading back into the city.

"I swear that man is on skooma. I swear it!" She told her shield siblings in disbelief at his behaviour.

Behind her, a sailor picked up the barrel containing the Harbinger's son and carried it aboard. Aela watched with a inward sigh of relief as the sailor placed the barrel down gently and another man strapped it in place.

The last thing the huntress wanted was for them to lose the precious cargo inside without even realising just how precious it was.


	5. Chapter 5

**Hi everyone! **

**Just a quick chapter this time because I'm currently on a very tight schedule. I'd also just like to add I've started a new fic. Thanks to a review by Mirage159 and a couple other comments from good friends of mine, I've started a Teagan fic. :D He appears to have some fans so I decided to maybe give him some back story. It's called My life before. go show it some love and tell me what you think ****:) **

**Anyway, enjoy the fic. **

**GP **

* * *

Chapter 4

The day long voyage to the island of Solstheim dragged on for a very sickly Ayah.

"I didn't know someone could hold that much puke..." Farkas grumbled as he held back his wife's hair while she vomited up the last of her stomach contents, all while trying to stay upright on the rocking ship.

"I didn't know she was seasick..." Vilkas commented to Aela. Both had seated themselves on the deck, hoping it would keep them from falling about like drunks.

"She never told me, or anyone for that matter." Aela scowled, watching the Harbinger spit the last chunks of sick over the side before wiping her pale lips with the back of her hand.

"We are n-never..." Ayah cringed, her stomach turning over as the boat crashed over a particularly brutal wave. "Doing this...Again!"

"Well we're going to have to." The huntress called to her over the wind. "Because we have to get back to Skyrim once we're done."

With a heavy sigh from Aela and a groan of disgust from Vilkas, Ayah gagged once more, her hands groping at the wooden side of the boat as she spewed up another round of vomit.

-oOo-

The sea quietened somewhat and Aela took the opportunity to seek out the Harbinger's son.

Ayah had near enough passed out on Farkas's lap, her chest aching from heaving and her head pounding. Farkas cuddled her tightly to him, trying to keep her limp body from sliding about the deck.

The sailor's whistled as she passed them, something that made her twitch with the rising anger of her inner wolf. She ignored them though and collected up an apple or two from an open crate before beginning the tedious process of opening each barrel and peering in.

She worked her way along the lines, growling in frustration whenever she opened one to find no child inside.

In normal circumstances, she'd have smelt him out. The boy was family. Part of her pack. Her nose even in human form was strong enough to pick up his unique scent. But as much as she tried, all the huntress could get a whiff of was very VERY strong, salty air.

It made her eyes water to say the least.

Eventually, the huntress stumbled upon what she was after, inside a very battered looking old barrel.

Inside, Kodlak was already stuffing himself with whatever food Teagan had packed away in his rucksack and the child looked up at Aela with podgy cheeks filled with food.

The older woman shot him a unimpressed look. "You're lucky your like your father, and not your mother. She currently can't keep anything down." She told him.

Kodlak quickly swallowed whatever he'd been chewing and smiled up at the huntress sweetly. "Can I come out yet?"

"No." Aela told him curtly, glancing about. She noticed a couple of sailors watching her, curious as to why she was talking to a barrel. A snarl was enough to cause them to jump and scurry away, leaving her in peace.

"Did Teagan make it on?" Kodlak asked again, shifting in the barrel to get comfortable. Even though he was still only small, the barrel was cramped and Kodlak had to near enough fold himself in two to fit comfortably.

"Teagan got caught. The bloody fool" Aela scoffed. "I have no doubt he'll find a way to follow us though."

"Aela!" Vilkas's voice came from not far behind her. Slamming the lid shut again, she turned, watching Vilkas make a shaky approach.

"Stay quiet and still. We won't be much longer now." She hissed to the barrel.

"What was that?" Vilkas gasped, almost losing his balance and tumbling into the huntress.

"Nothing. I was just curious as to what was in these barrels." Aela quickly said.

"Well?" Vilkas peered around her, looking at Kodlak's barrel. "What's in them?"

"Supplies." She shrugged and casually leant onto the barrel.

"Oh..."

Vilkas's attention turned to the sailors wondering the decks around them. They all seemed unfazed by the jerky movement of the vessel and Vilkas was a little envious.

"How do they do that?" He mused softly.

"They have their ship legs." Aela told him, pleased he'd lost interest in the barrels. "We barely leave land, so we're not used to it."

"Ayah's not used to it at all." Vilkas frowned at the thought of his sister-in-law.

"I'd have thought she would be. Didn't she travel Tamriel before coming to Skyrim?" Aela pondered. Inside the barrel, Kodlak shifted again, pressing his ear to the wood as he listened.

"Aye she did. She didn't say how she travelled though. Probably not by boat." He heard his uncle reply.

There was a cry from a distance and Aela and Vilkas paused to listen. One of the sailors, perched high in a crows nest was yelling down to some of the men on deck. Suddenly, everything seemed to buzz with life and men began running about, preparing.

"Looks like they're getting ready to pull into the harbour." Vilkas murmured, glancing about over his shoulder.

"Achoo!"

Vilkas started and turned to face Aela once more. The huntress was rubbing her nose sheepishly.

"Sorry." She shrugged, just about holding back the growl that rose in her throat.

"Not getting sick are you Aela?" Vilkas smirked. "I hope you haven't caught whatever Torvar had."

Aela gave a bitter laugh, cursing Kodlak inwardly.

-oOo-

Ayah awoke as the ship began to pull into the harbour. The waters had calmed and gingerly, with the help of Farkas, she stood.

"Mara... My chest is killing me." She wheezed.

She staggered to the side of the ship, watching as the small settlement of Rave rock grew closer and closer.

"This place doesn't look so bad." Farkas smiled, his arm wrapped protectively around his wife's waist.

Tearing her eyes away from the town, Ayah found herself staring off into the distance, admiring the towering volcano that loomed over the island.

The sight caused her mind to jolt and memories rushed back of all the times she'd seen the behemoth, the dark elves called Red mountain, up close and personal.

"Ayah?" Farkas shook her ever so gently, breaking her from her thoughts. She soon realised they'd come to a stop and a soft breath escaped her.

"Sorry, I was...thinking."

"You don't wanna do too much more of that." Vilkas snorted, coming up behind her. "So? Are we getting off or what?"

Ayah went to speak. She went to tell him she'd need a moment, when she was so rudely interrupted by someone on the small wooden pier beside the boat.

"I don't recognize you lot..." Came a snooty voice.

The companions looked up to see a dark elf, dressed in fine clothing with his long hair slicked back. He was accompanied by a guard wearing Bonemold armour. It was the sort of thing Ayah had been used to seeing while travelling through Morrowind as a child.

"I'll assume this is your first time in Raven Rock, outlanders." He addressed them, his arms crossing over his chest and his nose in the air slightly. "State your intentions."

Vilkas and Farkas looked to Ayah and Ayah stared blankly at the elf for a long moment.

"Er..." She mumbled dumbly. She could still taste vomit from earlier and she couldn't help the sour look that crossed her features. "We're here on business..." Was all she could manage. Feeling sick again, she buried her face against her husband's shoulder, much to the dark elf's curiosity.

"You'll have to excuse our Harbinger." Vilkas said, warily eyeing Ayah. "She's not had a good journey."The Dunmer clicked his tongue disapprovingly and Farkas visibly bristled at the man's careless attitude.

"Well either way. While you are here, I'd like to inform you that Raven Rock is Sovereign territory of House Redoran. This is Morrowind, NOT Skyrim, _Nords_." He sneered. "While you are here you are expected to abide by our laws."

Aela had crept up behind the other three companions while the elf talked, her eyes gleaming dangerously.

"Why are you so suspicious of visitors?" She purred.

The Dunmer seemed to recoil somewhat, seemingly unsettled by Aela's demeanour.

"I have to be." He said sharply. "As second councilor, the security of Raven Rock is my primary concern."

Vilkas and Aela shared a somewhat smug glance. "This place has security issues?"

His lips pulled back and the so called councilor cut his eyes at the pair. "This isn't exactly the city of Blacklight. We're on the frontier out here, and we've had more than our fair share of troubles. After all we've been through together, I refuse to let Councilor Morvayn down."

"What the-!"

"Hey!"

Shouting cut off the rest of the conversation and everyone turned to look further down the boat.

One of the sailors had been unloading the barrels as the companions and Dunmer councilor talked. When one of the barrels began to rattle when he touched it, the nord man had lifted the lid and been stunned at what he'd found.

He'd grasped Kodlak by the back of his armoured collar and yanked him out of the barrel he'd been stowed away in the whole trip.

The little boy struggled in the grown man's grip, kicking out and flailing about. "Lemme go! Lemme GO!" He yelled, trying to bite at the man's arm as he was held out at full stretch.

"Oops..." The huntress smirked coyly, her eyes turning to watch Ayah's face drop.

Eye's widening, jaw dropping, Ayah pushed off an also shocked looking Farkas and immediately made her way over to her son. Kodlak gave a howl, his little hands clawing and hitting at the man's arm.

"Kodlak!"

Tensing, the little boy snapped his head round to come face to face with his red faced, fury eyed mother.

"...momma..." Kodlak bit his lip shyly and chewed the finger of his glove.

Taking her child from the sailor, the feeling of sickness leaving her and being swiftly replaced by the feelings of distress and anger, Ayah marched off the boat. She pushed past the dark elf, nearly knocking him off the pier and into the drink.

He was just about saved by his guard escort.

-oOo-

"I cannot _ BELIEVE _you've done this Kodlak!" Ayah hissed through her clenched teeth as she walked into the heart of the settlement. She had no idea where she was or where she was going, but she needed to calm down. And with a shamefaced little boy in her arms, the Harbinger began to walk laps around the tiny market place, much to the interest of the locals.

"I'm sorry momma" Kodlak whined, chewing his glove.

"I told you to stay with Teagan. I asked him to look after you.." She sighed heavily, her anger subsiding into disappointment. She felt Teagan had let her down so horribly this time...she didn't want to see his face again.

"All I asked was for you to be kept safe." She murmured to her son, kissing his head.

"He can't be wrapped in cotton wool forever Ayah." The huntress's voice came from beside her.

Spinning on her heel, Ayah was confronted by the flame haired woman, her arms crossed over her chest and a vexed expression on her face.

Ayah scowled back, hugging her boy closer.

"This trip'll be good for him. He can grow and learn, but you have to let him." Aela ground out firmly.

"I wouldn't be surprised if you knew he was in one of those barrels." Ayah grumbled bitterly.

Without warning, Kodlak was plucked from his mother's arms, Ayah spinning and making a grab for the boy. She was relieved when she found it was only Farkas and relaxed a little more as the boy's father held Kodlak out at arms's length to look him in the eye.

"That was very naughty." He scolded weakly.

"But papa!" Kodlak wriggled in his father's strong grip. "I wanted to come too!"

Farkas eyed the boy closely for a second or two before shrugging and bringing the boy close. "Ah well. You're here now." He smiled against his son's hair, much to Ayah's annoyance.

"I'm hungry..." Kodlak muffled against his father's armoured shoulder.

"You were eating when I checked on you..." Aela snorted.

"So you did know he was in the barrel!" Ayah spat angrily at the huntress. Aela merely shrugged.

Grinning, Farkas tossed the boy in the air. Kodlak squealed and laughed, his little armour clunking loudly as he was caught again.

"How about we go get some elf food?" Farkas laughed and his son nodded eagerly.

"I don't think Dunmer food is much different to ours..." Ayah murmured, her voice trailing off. Farkas ruffled Kodlak's hair lovingly and grinned when the little boy tried to return the favour.

Ayah's thoughts got lost in watching her husband and son, her mind swirling with scary outcomes to the situation they were now in.

"Stop thinking..." Aela whispered into her right ear, sending chills up her spine. She'd done the same thing back Ayah had first come to the mead hall...And she still hadn't listened.

"I-I need to sell some things." She stuttered, trying to force herself to move. "Farkas, you go feed Kodlak...find somewhere we can stay for a while, please?"

Farkas's grin never left him as he nodded and leant in to kiss her, Kodlak following his father's lead and kissing his mother's cheek.

"Stay safe love." He murmured against her lips before pulling away. He turned, tossing her a wink before heading to a nearby guard to see what they could find out.

_Stay safe! _It drove her mad, but Ayah knew Farkas was only concerned. He'd begun telling her to stay safe after a certain incident years back, just after Kodlak's first summer.

Have the child took a lot out of Ayah and she still blamed her weakened state, even after a year, on her pregnancy.

She'd been atop a small mountain in Falkreath hold when she'd been attacked by a dragon. It wasn't what she was on top of a mountain for, but she figured she'd try and battle it out. Needless to say, the dragon had almost won, knocking her off the thin mountain path with it's wing. She'd tumbled all the way down and was sure she'd broken her back. She lay silently in the brush for what seemed like an age, the dragon roaring as it circled over her, looking for its fallen opponent.

Eventually, and much to Ayah's luck, it had lost interest and flown away. But it had left her laying, crippled, in a brush.

She'd lay there for two days before finally a hunter and his pack of dogs had come near, what she was sure would be her final resting place. That had killed her. She lay, silently crying in the darkness at the thought of what would become of her. What she'd left behind. The humiliation of how it had all come to pass.

The hunter had taken her to Falkreath village where she'd been handed over to a couple of guard who took her to the inn. Zaria had been called from her store, Grave concoctions. (The name did nothing to inspire confidence in the injured Harbinger.) And word had been sent to Farkas and the other companions.

On the positive side, Zaria had examined her and reassured her her back wasn't broken...as such. She'd slipped a disc of two, leaving her legs numb. She'd treated her the best she could, trying to make her more comfortable before a day or so later, Farkas came sprinting into Falkreath, dragging a very tired looking Danica, with Vilkas, Aela and Ria in toe.

Shaking her head at the memory, Ayah started for the blacksmith she could see working at his shop not far from where she stood.

Farkas had been in such a mess when he'd arrived in Falkreath. He was somehow under the impression it was his fault and it took a week to convince him he'd not even known, therefore making it none of his fault.

It took another 4 weeks for Ayah to begin walking again and 10 weeks for her to be able to bend enough to put on armour.

It had been very scary. Gods help that dragon if she ever saw it again.

"Can I help you?" The breton smith looked up from his grind wheel as Ayah came to a stop in front of him. He was heavily built, not unsurprising for a smith, but something about his bald head and facial features gave Ayah a sense of familiarity she couldn't help but smile at.

"I have a couple items I want to sell." She said softly, pulling off her pack. The smith smiled back slightly and watched her rummage through her things.

"New to Solstheim?" He asked with a gravely tone as Ayah handed him a couple of Daedric daggers and a pair of Skyforge steel gloves with a gentle nod.

She'd found them while revisiting the burned out old sanctuary in Falkreath a week or so before with Babette. The vampire child often became a little forlorn as she reminisced about the old family back in the forest of Falkreath hold and Ayah would sometimes accompany her back there.

She'd found the gloves under a pile of ash and burned wood in the room that used to be the bedroom of Astrid, the mistress of the sanctuary.

She frowned when she realised. They were Arnbjorn's.

She'd never gotten on with the Falkreath wolf man. She wasn't a companion back then, or a wolf, though she was well aware of his past history with them.

If anything, she'd found him a little frightening and often chose to spend her time at the sanctuary with Babette and Gabriella in the potions room of the dark brotherhood's home.

If she had to speak to him and only if she _really _needed to, she'd stand right back away from the forge he worked at, shouting across to him. The others found it hilarious and teased her about being shy or not liking the smell of wet dog, something Nazir sometimes quipped. In truth, she found the man truly terrifying.

It turned out, the evasive action only worked to piss Arnbjorn off more and he'd snarl at her, causing her to quickly retreat with tears of fear in her eyes.

She wanted to snort at how naive she used to be. He wasn't really that bad... Or perhaps her mindset had changed after living with wolves...

She made a mental note to ask the other's about him when she found them again and they had a moment to talk.

"You here on business, or pleasure? No..no. Let me guess. Business." The breton smirked while running his hands over the Skyforge gloves in fascination.

"How'd you guess?" Ayah smirked in return, chewing her lip slightly as she leant against the wooden beam that held the roof up over the smithery.

"Ah, I'm just good like that." He said with a raspy chuckle and placed the gloves down to look over the daggers. "We don't get many from Skyrim here. Not any more. Just some elves from Morrowind now and again." He continued, his eyes narrowing almost accusingly as he cradled one of the daggers in his hands. "Are these _really _yours?" He asked lowly, nodding to the Skyforge gloves.

Ayah was offended to say the least. She scoffed and pushed off the beam, glaring down at the man slightly.

"They are...But what would it matter if they weren't?" She spat back at the man.

Shrugging slightly, his accusing expression dropped, quickly being replaced with a lazy smile. "Nothing." He said, nodding back over his shoulder slightly.

Ayah's eyes followed, coming to rest on the shadowmark carved into the wooden frame of his door.

"You're a thief?" Ayah asked quietly, her heart lifting somewhat.

"_Was_ a thief." He corrected her quickly in a hushed tone. "But I still do a decent price to anyone of that... persuasion."

Ayah couldn't help the sudden joy that flooded her. "You're a long way from Riften. How are you meant to report to Bryn from here?" She joked.

The smith chuckled again, leaning back a little in his seat on the grindstone. "I don't. I don't even get a blasted letter from my own brother." He snorted. "Can you imagine?"

"And you're brother would be...?" Ayah already had a feeling. Everything was just way too coincidental.

"Delvin." The smith confirmed Ayah's suspicions. Leaning forward, he outstretched his hand and smiled. "Glover Mallory. Pleasure to meet you."

Ayah nearly laughed. Old Delvin had a brother. Nice of him to mention that. Taking his hand, she shook it firmly and grinned.

"Ayah Red-Fury. I'm a good friend of your brother's."

"Red-Fury..." Glover mused, taking his hand back. "That's an old name from Markarth I haven't heard in a number of years."

"Aye. " Ayah shrugged. "Not many of my family left now. Just me, my cousin. Oh and now my son."

"I assume that was the boy you were carrying while wondering aimlessly around the market not long ago?" Glover commented, reaching for his coin purse.

"Aye that's him." She huffed with a roll of her eyes. "He's not meant to be here. He's meant to back in Skyrim in my cousin's care. He stowed away on the boat we took to get here in a barrel."

"Sneaky" Glove laughed and began to count out some gold. "Another thief in the making?"

"I don't think so." The Harbinger laughed idly. "The boys training to be a companion someday."

"A companion?" Glover paused in his counting. "You're a companion?"

"Aye. And the boy's father."

"And a thief to boot?" The smith smirked in disbelief more than anything.

"_Was _a thief." She mocked his earlier correction of her. "Then again, I _was _many things. Still am. I just associate with them less now I have people watching my every move. Bryn doesn't seem to mind though. He thinks its funny as anything."

"Bryn would." He replied and handed her a couple handfuls of coin.

"Thanks." She smiled and tucked them away in a pouch on her belt. "So, how'd you end up here? Its not exactly a..." Frowning, she glanced round at the very basic market place. "Hotspot of excitement and life threatening risk..."

With a heavy exhale of breath, Glover Mallory stood from his grindstone, collecting up his newly brought items in one arm and leant against a second wooden beam to continue his conversation with Ayah.

"I learnt some skills in Riften from a Dunmer named Vanryth..." Ayah recognised the name from the Ragged Flagon. Since restoring the guild to it's former glory, a dark elf with that name had set up shop there. Perhaps it was the same man?

"He taught me to repair and forge Bonemold armour. Lets be honest, it wasn't gonna help me back in Riften, was it?" He shrugged. "I decided to move out here to try and put my skills to the test. The redoran guard keep me busy now and I occasionally get trade from travellers and maybe even some of the skaal trade with me from time to time."

Lazily scratching his jaw, Glover eyed Ayah curiously.

"What kind of business brings you to this island? This isn't the usual place for companions to venture..."

a light-hearted and somewhat playful smile appeared on Ayah's lips. Behind Glover, she could see Vilkas come out of one of the Dunmer style buildings and hover in the doorway, looking over at the forge.

"Hunting." She told him, patting his shoulder. "We're here for hunting." She squeezed his shoulder as she left and bid the somewhat confused looking breton goodbye.

"I thought you said you were selling some things..." Vilkas mentioned casually as she walked toward him. "Not flirting with the blacksmith."

Ayah giggled lightly and stroked her fingers across Vilkas's rough chin as she passed him. "Oh you're just jealous I'm not flirting with you Vilkas."

"Ha!" He barked out loud, shaking his head as he turned to follow her back inside the cornerclub known as the Retching Netch.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Kodlak pushed the sliced up pieces of ash yam around his plate with his fork, more in disgust than anything. His very first encounter with the strange vegetable had left him believing that maybe cabbage wasn't so bad any more.

He continued to toy with his food a while longer before eventually losing interesting and almost violently, began to stab at the pieces, reducing them to mush.

"We could always return home?" Vilkas offered lazily. He knew that Ayah would be more than reluctant to get back on the northern maiden any time soon, meaning his little nephew would be staying.

The mere thought of the sea made Ayah's stomach lurch. She was glad she hadn't chosen to eat like Farkas and her son had. She knew she'd have brought it back up by then.

"Looks like you'll be coming with us then Kodlak." Aela said, almost smugly.

The little boy beamed up from his plate, his fork stilling. "Really?"

"Aye well..." Vilkas began, eyeing a pale looking Ayah. "Your mother would rather not go back across the sea just yet."

"I can't believe I'm being blackmailed like this." The harbinger groaned.

The companions had crowded themselves around a small table in the retching netch cornerclub, stealing chairs from other tables so everyone could be seated.

the other patrons, be it few and far between at that time of day, watched the large group of nords from a distance.

"We're not blackmailing you..." Aela waved her hand nonchalantly. "Its just very clear you don't want to go back out to sea. And we can't send Kodlak back a _alone_, can we?"

The huntress watched the younger woman glower, her cheeks still flushed of colour.

"I can't believe I'm about to say this." She murmured. "But fine. He can stay. But at the first sign of...ANYTHING...He's out of here. One of you will take him home. Understood?"

"Understood Harbinger." The others replied in unison.

"I can come too then?!" Kodlak, in his excitement, clambered to stand on his chair, which rocked and creaked in protest.

Nodding, his mother gently eased him down in his seat again before he fell. "Aye. You can come little one."She wrinkled her nose then and stuck her tongue out at him. "But I think you need to bathe before we do anything else. You smell of onions."

"Do not!" He bleated.

"Do too." Farkas answered him.

"It must be from that barrel." Aela commented, her hand lazily swirling her sujamma around in it's cup.

Standing without another word, Ayah wondered over to the bar. She spoke with Geldis, the dark elf that owned the cornerclub, before returning to the table and plucking her child from his seat.

"Geldis has kindly said we can use his stone tub. Come now little one. I can't stand your stink any longer."

"I don't have to bathe too, do I?" Farkas whined as his son struggled in Ayah's arms. Neither had much affection for their matriarch's need for cleanliness.

"Perhaps." His wife purred, leaning down to kiss him softly.

"You smell like a horker!" Kodlak laughed, reaching to tug Farkas's hair when Ayah leant in. Grasping two handfuls of his father's hair, Kodlak pulled, laughing louder when Farkas jumped and yelped in pain before smacking his hands away.

"Hey!" Farkas winced, rubbing his sore scalp. Kodlak continued to giggle, his legs kicking out trying to make contact with his father.

"Play fight!" He yelled and continued to wiggle about.

"Play fight later." Ayah tightened her grip on the child, pinning his legs against her.

"Aye!" Farkas grumbled. "Little cheat. We haven't even started yet."

Rounding the table, Kodlak still flailing about as she carried him, Ayah headed deeper into the cornerclub. Geldis had directed her to one of the far rooms at the back where he said there was somewhere Ayah could use to clean up. Eventually, she found what he was talking about. It was a small room, used as a indoor wash room.

Ayah was pleased to have such a luxury.

Since living in Skyrim, she'd finally discovered why many of the other races referred to the nords as savages and barbarians. Across the different lands of Tamriel, Ayah had become used to such things like indoor wash rooms and sanitary sewage disposal.

Skyrim left a lot to be desired.

It was clear the nords were more preoccupied with things like battling and mead than actually installing a good sewage system in many of their cities.

Placing her son down to undress himself, Ayah left the room and returned a short time later with Farkas, both carrying buckets of warm water.

The Dunmer had slaves to do that task usually. But it appeared Raven Rock was slave free and everyone was left to do everything for themselves. Ayah could only imagine how much that upset the members of noble house Redorun.

Kodlak, now undressed and his armour and undergarments piled off to the side of the tub, tiptoed to clutch the edge of the great stone bath. He watched intently as Farkas empted his buckets into the tub before taking his wife's and doing the same.

"Just right." The hulking nord warrior smiled while swirling his fingers around in the water. He then wiped his hand off on his leathers before reaching for Kodlak, lowering his son in gently.

Immediately, the little boy began to splash, purposely kicking water at his father. Ayah stood back, already well aware how this usually went. Farkas laughed and splashed back, water flying everywhere.

"Right. That's it!" Kodlak squealed and ducked under the water, missing as Farkas began to tear at his amour.

The large man growled as he fought with his bindings. "Ayah, help me!" He grunted through his teeth, one arm flailing while the other remained stuck under his breastplate. Rolling her eyes, Ayah stepped forward, her fingers nimbly working open the straps that held the breastplate together.

The metal amour clattered to the floor as Farkas forced himself free and once he'd unlaced and discarded his leather trousers and kicked off his heavy boots, he dove into the tub after his son, scooping Kodlak up out of the water with a playful snarl.

Ayah smiled softly and went about the task of collecting up her husband's things. She preferred it when washing became a game for them. They were both very stubborn otherwise and it could become quite the hassle.

The warm water, that which wasn't running down the walls or on the floor, quickly turned black with grime and war paint as the boys rough-housed.

"I'm going to have to do a lot of apologising to Geldis..." Ayah sighed, more to herself than her husband or son. They weren't listening anyway.

It didn't take long before the fighting finally died down and Farkas let out a tired breath as he rested back against the edge of the tub. He hated to admit it, but it had taken having a child to finally force him to realise he was getting old.

He watched lazily as Kodlak continued to splash, just not as frantic now he'd clear won the battle. The boy was full of energy and seemed to be into absolutely everything, as children his age usually were. His senses were a lot sharper than other children's though and he picked up on things quickly. Farkas wasn't that surprised he'd stowed away on the ship. When Kodlak was determined to do something or go somewhere, nothing stopped him.

He'd make a good companion someday, Farkas thought with a smile. Maybe even Harbinger. That would be great.

"Papa?"

Farkas lifted his head off the edge of the tub to look over at his son. "pup?"

Kodlak chewed his lip, his little brows scrunched together as he thought. Just like his father, the little boy sometimes struggled with what he wanted to say even thought he was quite bright.

"momma isn't angry with me is she?" He asked finally.

"Angry?" Farkas's nose wrinkled slightly. "No. Why would you think that pup?"

"She didn't want me to come." His son replied sheepishly.

"Its not that she's angry with you." Farkas frowned. "She's just...er..." His mind began to churn, straining to find the words to explain. "Solstheim is..." He shifted awkwardly against the stone. His tendency to be blunt wasn't just something that applied to adults, it applied to everyone. That included children. Ayah sometimes got angry with me for being a little _too _honest with their boy.

"Solstheim is..." He repeated, the creases in his forehead becoming more prominent as he thought.

"_Solstheim is...?_" Kodlak urged him. His son didn't quite understand his father's inability to express himself through words just yet and often used the condescending tone Aela sometimes used when she became inpatient with her shield sibling. Ayah would have scolded him for it, but she'd left not long ago to find something for them to dry off with.

"Solstheim is...bad." He finally said, quietly proud of himself.

"Bad?" Kodlak frowned and gave his father a sceptical look.

"Aye. bad." Farkas smiled. "For those with wolf blood."

"But you have wolf blood?" Kodlak fidgeted in the water and made his way onto his father's lap.

"Aye."

"So does momma, and uncle Vilkas and Aela!"

"Aye. But we're grown ups." Farkas told him, petting his son's wet hair.

Wrinkling his little nose, a habit he'd picked up from his father, Kodlak scowled. "That's not fair."

"No?" Farkas asked him questioningly.

"No. I can control my beast blood better than anyone! I was born with it! Momma said my ring helps me!" He whined, grasping the ring of Hircine that hung around his little neck and holding it up to Farkas.

"Aye, it does." His father smiled, reaching to touch the ring. as soon as his fingers touched the metal, Farkas could feel the calming effect it brought to his wolf. "But that doesn't stop your ma from worrying."

Huffing out a breath, Kodlak dropped his ring, letting it fall back against his neck. "Its still not fair."

"How isn't it?" A voice said from the doorway. The two jumped and their heads spun to see Ayah return, carrying drying cloths. "You're here now. Why complain?"

Unfolding the drying cloth, she lifted Kodlak out and wrapped him up tightly. Spying the look on her husband's face, Ayah smirked. "I'm not lifting you out. You're a big boy now Farkas."

"Yes dear." He grinned while taking his drying cloth from her and stepping out of the tub.

-oOo-

Leaving Kodlak with his father and Aela, Vilkas and Ayah ventured out of the retching netch for a late afternoon scout around.

"This place looks like it's seen better days..." Vilkas commented, looking over at the locals as they packed up their stalls for the night.

"Perhaps. I'm just surprise people are even willing it live on an island with a history of Daedric control." Ayah replied and waved at Glover Mallory as he worked the forge. The breton smirked and shot her over a wink before returning to his steel.

"It was under Skyrim's control for a long time." Vilkas began. "We handed it back to the Dunmer when red mountain erupted." Good old Vilkas. Always a great source of random nord history.

"That's very nice of us." Ayah snorted and leaned toward the second councilor as they walked past him. "You're very welcome." She laughed, patting his back.

The dark elf gave her the most peculiar look before returning to his conversation with another elf.

"You're such a fool at times." Vilkas rolled his eyes and heaved a irritated breath.

"Oh lighten up." Ayah said, nudging her brother-in-law.

Vilkas shook his head disapprovingly, his eyes turning toward a stretch of land further on from Raven rock. "You see that?" He stopped mid step and pointed off into the distance.

"See what?" Ayah paused also and turned to look.

Ahead, there appeared to be a building site. Or, at least it looked that way.

"Why would anyone want to build a house here?" Ayah scowled and scratched her head.

"That's not a house...look closer." Vilkas growled.

It soon became obvious Vilkas was right. The people working didn't appear to be building anything that even slightly resembled a home.

"Its a rock." Ayah mused out loud. "Why are they building around a rock?"

"A glowing rock..." Vilkas added.

The two looked at each other, their minds already made up. Without another word on the subject, both started toward the structure.

They weaved through the entranced builders, all citizens of Raven rock. None acknowledged the strangers, something both Ayah and Vilkas found unnerving.

"Its like they're all brainwashed." Ayah murmured back to her shield sibling as they stood among the workers and building materials.

"It looks like some kind of shrine..." Vilkas muttered, his eyes scanning to stone closely.

The pillar glowed with a deep green light, but even that could not penetrate the thick, blackish water the stone was standing in.

Ayah waved her hand in front of the face of one Dunmer woman as she worked at carving the arches that encircled the pillar. The woman did not react, merely continuing her work blindly while murmuring about "his shrine".

"Don't touch anything!" Vilkas suddenly called to her, making her start and spin on the spot.

"You don't touch anything!" She countered childishly. She wanted to cringe and slap herself, but that was the best she could do in her surprise.

"You're such a child." Vilkas sneered. "You wear a wedding ring and are a mother, yet you still bicker like a child."

Ugh. Great. "Just leave me be Vilkas. You shocked me. Shouting at me without warning..." She waved him off, her lip curling back.

"Well I mean it." He snapped. "Don't touch anything. This doesn't smell right."

Ayah waited until he'd turned away again to inhale deeply, trying to see if it really did smell bad. All she inhaled however was a lungful of thick sea air and ash that burned her throat and made her cough.

Once her coughing fit had ended, Ayah turned her attention to the pillar and stepped into the thick murky water to get closer.

She didn't have to get too close to it to feel the power radiating from it. She eyed it closely, wondering what had made her brother-in-law so touchy. Then again, Vilkas always was a little paranoid. That's how she'd become a companion.

Her hand stretched out to touch the stone but she paused to look over her shoulder to Vilkas. He appeared to have found someone NOT possessed and was talking with a bald Dunmer in bright clothes. Without any further thought, she touched the stone...

Everything went black.

-oOo-

"What faithless minds have stolen..."

"Your eyes once were blinded..."

"Your hands once were idle..."

"And when the world remembers..."

"That you have forgotten..."

"Here you reclaim..."

The voice faded and Ayah's eyes began to refocus. She felt like she'd fallen asleep, but when she awoke fully she found she was busy chipping away at the stone, much like the other workers and there was someone leaning around her to stare directly into her face intrusively.

She gasped at the sight of the red eyes and dark skin and nearly fell backward into the water.

"Where am I?!" She shrieked.

"You touched that blasted stone!" Vilkas yelled at her from off to the side.

"Most interesting." The Dark elf mused, still studying Ayah intently. "She seemed to shake herself out of the trance. I haven't seen anyone else do that yet." He added, stroking his goatee thoughtfully. "Tell me, do you feel nauseous? What about your head? does it feel as if it may explode at any moment?" He questioned her.

"What?! No! who...where...Vilkas?" She looked over at her shield sibling pleadingly.

"This is Neloth." Vilkas drawled in displeasure, crossing his arms over his chest. "He's been examining this...earth stone... and the events surrounding it."

"I'm a master Telvanni wizard-lord you see..." The Dunmer continued absently, as if he was used telling people. "I've been studying the stone for a short time now. You're the first I've seen come out of the powerful trance touching it causes." He added while eyeing Ayah all over for any strange side effects that may have occurred. "Extraordinary." He breathed and leant forward to force Ayah's left eye wide open with his index finger and thumb curiously.

"Hey!" She yelped and slapped his hand away, all while stumbling backward and nearly into the stone pillar.

"Could you touch the pillar again?" The odd Dunmer wizard asked. "I wish to study you more while under it's influence."

"No!" Ayah snapped. "You touch the bloody pillar if your that interested!?"

Neloth recoiled, his lips curling in disgust. "Nords. Always so barbaric." He spat with venom. "Now stop being so stupid and stubborn and touch the pillar!" He demanded.

"I don't think so..." Vilkas grasped Ayah arm roughly and dragged her away from Neloth and the earth stone. He forced her behind him, standing protectively between her and the dark elf. Ayah would have been flattered if she wasn't so sure Vilkas was going to scream down her ear for being so stupid when they were alone again.

Neloth casually tucked his arms behind his back and gave a rather graceful shrug. "Fine. Be like that. Ruin my research. Everyone's always ruining my research!"

"My harbinger isn't here for your research, elf. She's a fool, yes. But you're not using her as some test subject." Vilkas snarled. Ayah remained silent. If anything, she wanted to slip away and was seriously considering slipping down the bank and swimming across to the other side of the bay.

"I don't know what a _Harbinger_ is, but I imagine it's some pitiful title you nords give to one of your kin that can tie their own laces." Neloth commented flippantly.

Vilkas visibly bristled and was on the verge of drawing his sword on the Telvanni magic man when a roar echoed through the skies above the town of Raven rock.

Ayah's heart skipped a beat, ironically out of joy, as she recognised the sound.

"Oh look!" She yelled and sped off back toward Raven rock without a moments hesitation. "A dragon! Sorry but I really must deal with this!?" She shouted back to Vilkas and Neloth, both looking disgruntled.


End file.
